


A Lifetime Together

by lord_of_cats



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Shapeshifters, And then growing old and dying together, As i update I'll add more, Basically its johndave growing up together, Don't worry they're great, F/F, FTM John, He's got it bad, Jaderose in chapter 16!, John is trans by the way, Johndave in chapter 22, M/M, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining Dave, Shapeshifting, Warning: There will be my fankids later, brief johnrose in chapter 15
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-24
Updated: 2018-11-22
Packaged: 2019-02-06 07:01:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 68
Words: 138,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12812190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lord_of_cats/pseuds/lord_of_cats
Summary: Dave Strider is the cool one, with shape-shifting abilities and a smart attitude.John Egbert is the funny one, with an arsenal of pranks and a people friendly attitude that slides suspicions off him. Together, they are unstoppable and a teacher's worst nightmare.A story of love and friendship as two boys grow up together, live their life together and die together.





	1. 6 Years Old. First Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> Just some headcanons for the fic and in general!  
> John is Vietnamese and Trans. To clear things up, Joy is John before he transitions.  
> Dave is (Caucasian) albino.  
> Rose is Egyptian-American  
> Jade is polynesian/pacific islander.

Elementary school is a cruel, unforgiving place, especially for those who are different.

No one knows this more than Dave Strider, mutant shifter and six year old boy.

Society already hates shifters enough-shape shifters able to manipulate their form into any animal form from their own true human form. They are seen as untrustworthy and in some cases, animalistic. 

But mutant shifters? They are detested and seen as monstrous scum even by shifters themselves. Unlike normal shifters, mutant shifters don't have a normal human form--they have the form of a monster. 

Dave is thankful for his father, a normal shifter, who has trained him to hold onto a human form for longer and longer periods. It is crucial to Dave's survival that he does so; the kids at school are cruel. Even though Dave's human form passes as human, they still see him for the monster he is. They still know what he is. 

His only friend is his twin brother Dirk, who isn't a shifter, but even brotherly bonds cannot stand up to the bullies. His brother can't save him from all of them, he's only six. And besides, the bullies are in 3rd grade, and a lot tougher than any six year old.

The hallways are a danger zone, especially empty hallways.

 

Dave hurries down the corridor as fast as his little legs can carry him. It's lunchtime, and he has to get to the cafeteria as fast as he can. He needs to meet up with his brother and eat with his brother and his friends.

He hopes he doesn't run into his bullies, he's already had a really bad day. Unfortunately for him, Lady Luck doesn't appear to be in his favour today.

As soon as he rounds the corner, there they are. There's three of them, because there always is in these kinds of things. Three hits to kill a video game boss. Three strikes and you're out. The main bully and his two lackeys.

“Please don't see me, please don't see me.” Dave whispers to himself like a mantra, backing away slowly. Unfortunately, like in the movies when a character is trying to sneak away, his foot bumps against the locker with a loud thunk, causing the bullies heads to snap around to look at him.

“Hey look! It's the freak!” One of them crows. 

Dave turns and sprints down the hallway, but his tiny little legs are no match for the 3rd graders longer legs. He's slammed against the locker. His concentration slips, and he loses grips on his human form, slipping back into his true, monster form.

“Ew, that's fucking disgusting!” One of the bullies recoils, stepping away from the white mass of feathers, scales, slime and fur that's cowering under the main bullies grip.

“Well I don't exactly want to touch it either!” The main bully snaps back to his lackey, scowl deep set into his eight year old features.

“Hey!” A voice speaks up, wavering slightly but filled with determination. “Leave him alone, or I'll tell teacher!”

Dave's saviour has come in the form of a chubby six year old girl. Her name is Joy Egbert if Dave remembers correctly.

“Oh wow.” The main bully rolls his eyes, before fixing them on Joy. “What a threat.”

Joy pouts, and in one swift movement, lifts her leg up to kick him in the nuts. The bully staggers backwards, clutching the offended area. His lackeys stare in amazement.

“Oooh you'll pay for this.” The bully snarls.

As he says this however, a teacher appears on the scene, as if summoned by magic. It's Ms Jones, the kind elderly kindergarten teacher.

“What's going on here?” She puts her hands on her hips. “You boys better not be causing trouble.” Ms Jones, bless her kind heart, is a little dense.

“No miss we weren't-”

“We were just-”

“-leaving”

The three boys mumble out incoherently before running off down the corridor. Ms Jones turns her attention to Joy and Dave, frowning a little. “You two better not be fooling around either.”

“We're not miss!” Joy grins, batting her eyelashes angelicy. 

“That's good to hear.” Ms Jones says before heading down the corridor, leaving Joy and Dave alone.

 

Joy sticks her hand out to Dave, obviously intending to shake his hand, slime covered talons or no.

“My names Joy Egbert. You're Dave Strider, right? I think you're in my class.”

Now that the bullies are gone, Dave can get a better look at her. Bright blue eyes are framed by thick square glasses and multitudes of freckles. Dark hair is plaited into twin pigtails, each tied with a blue bow. She's wearing a light blue dress, patterned with little hearts.

She's got an earnest look in her eyes. Like she really does want to be friends.

Dave squeezes his eyes shut and focuses, slipping back into his normal, human form, before taking her hand. She pulls him back up onto his feet. It's then that he realises how tiny she is, half a head shorter than him, and he finds it hilarious that she was the one who scared the bullies away, when his brother, much taller and intimidating, couldn't.

“Yeah, that's me.”

“Do you want to come sit with me and my friends in the cafeteria? I just got a talking to from stupid Miss Leifly for putting a frog on her chair, so I'm heading to the cafeteria now.” She seems genuine in her offer, as genuine as a six year old admitting they got in trouble anyway.

“I-I always sit with my brother at lunch…” Dave mumbles, avoiding her gaze.

“Oh...I'm sure he won't mind, my friends are super nice! I always see you sitting by yourself or with your brother, come sit with us for a bit.”

“I...okay.” Dave doesn't think his brother would mind too much. Dirk is pretty insistent in Dave making his own friends instead of hanging around his all the time. Well, he's never said that, but Dave knows that's what he thinks when he tags along.

“Great!” Joy grins harder, smiling in a way true to her name. “Follow me!”

Joy heads down the corridor, making sure Dave follows her. He does, albeit slowly and a little warily.

“My friends are Rose and Jade, you know them, right?”

Dave has heard of them, yes. All things come in threes, and Joy Egbert, Rose Lalonde and Jade Harley are quite the trio.

Joy Egbert is the class clown. She always interrupts class with stupid questions and makes everyone in the class laugh. Who else would put a frog on the teacher's chair?

Jade Harley is the nice one. She seems like the kind of person who'd be nice to someone no matter what. She also seems to have a big smile permanently fixed on her face.

Rose Lalonde is the smart one. She always pipes up contradictions to the teacher's statements, which often gets her in trouble. She and Joy often frequent the principal's office.

The three of them are kind of a big deal in the First Grade classroom. Dave is a little shocked that Joy asked him to sit with them--he's the weird kid. The freak that sits at the back of the classroom and never says anything.

“Yeah I know them.” Dave replies, a little cautiously.

“Great!” Joy skips ahead a little bit. “I'm sure they'll like you!”

“They don't even know who I am.”

“Yeah they do! I mean, everyone knows who you are, you're the only shifter in school!”

Dave winces, flinching back. He knew that was going to come eventually. No matter how nice they are, that always comes. “Don't…”

“What? Why not?” Joy frowns, expression foreign on a face such as hers.

“You know why.” Dave replies curtly.

“No I don't. I think shifters are pretty neat! So don't worry about what those bullies say. They're big meanies anyway.”

“They're right though. I am a freak. You saw what I really look like. I'm a monster. What you see now? That's just an illusion. What you saw then was what I  really am.”

“I think you look pretty cool! Like a majestic bird or something. And I'd like to see you again, as you really are. If you don't mind.”

“I uh...no…” Dave flushes. That's the first time someone's ever said he looks cool before. Not his human form, but his true form. The description Joy used wasn't the best, but the sentiment is there. But despite her kindness, he doesn't want to show her. He knows damn well what he looks like. He doesn't want to scare one of the only people who's ever been nice to him.

“Okay!” The smile is back on Joy's face. “Anyway, I think Rose and Jade will think you're cool too!”

“You're sure about that?”

“Uh-huh! Jade’s really nice! And Rose may seem really grumpy, but she's really nice too!”

“Oh…” Dave allows himself to smile. Maybe now he will have some real friends, instead of his brothers friends. Maybe now he won't be so alone.

The cafeteria doors are just up ahead, muffling the sound of laughter and chatter. Joy stops in front of them, pushing then open with surprising strength in little arms. 

The cafeteria is awash with noise and colours. Children are chatting amongst themselves on their separate tables. Lunch trays are stacked up on tables and on top of the bins.

Joy leads Dave through the tables, to a relatively empty table with only two people sitting down. Dave glances at the table his brother usually sits at. Dirk meets his eyes for a second, before glancing at Joy and giving his brother a thumbs up.

The girl closest to Joy and Dave is very dark skinned, with curly black hair tied back with a purple headband. She's drinking out of the milk carton supplied in the school lunches. Dave recognises her as Rose Lalonde.

The girl sitting beside her is animatedly chatting away while popping chicken nuggets in her mouth. Her messy black hair falls halfway down her back. Darkly tanned skin compliments her pale green top that's covered in blue polka dots. Dave recognises her as Jade Harley.

“Hey guys!” Joy slides across the table, sitting opposite the other two girls. “This is Dave, he's going to sit with us now.”

“Hi.” Dave mumbles, sitting next to Joy.

“Hello! Nice to meet you!” Jade grins, fixing her attention on Dave.

“Likewise.” Rose nods, setting down a milk carton on the table.

Joy reaches into her backpack, digging around in there until triumphantly pulling out a sandwich wrapped in plastic wrap. Catching Dave's inquiring look she shrugs. “My dad doesn't want me eating school lunches. He says that they're unhealthy and gross.”

“Oh...okay…” Dave replies. He doesn't exactly have lunch; his dad never bothers to pack anything like Joy's dad does, and hasn't topped up his lunch balance yet. But it's okay! He will soon.

Joy looks at the blank space in front of her new friend, and without much consideration, slides half her sandwich across the table. Dave looks back at her, feeling guilty, but she gives him a very insistent look that forces him to pick up the sandwich and take a bite. It's very good. He can taste the love put into it.

“So Dave, it appears you'll be sitting with us from now on.” Rose pipes up, dabbing at her face with a napkin.

“I guess so. If you'd have me.” He trails off awkwardly, clearly a bit out of his depth.

“Of course you're allowed to sit here!” Jade grins, leaning closer to him. “Joy is very insistent in making new friends. Why do you think me and Rose are sitting here?”

“Rose and I.” Rose corrects. Jade sticks her tongue out and blows a raspberry in response.

Joy laughs, quickly joined in by Jade, then Rose, then surprisingly, Dave. Joy smiles harder at her own achievement.

The bell rings, cutting off the quartets lunchtime activities. Dave panics internally, fearing that this was an only one lunchtime type of deal. However that quickly dissipates when his three new friends walk with him back to class, and get him to sit at their table.

For once in his six years, Dave has a friend. That isn't his brother.

 

Later, when Joy and Dave head their separate ways home, the two children excitedly tell their siblings about their day. They both can't wait to tell their dads.

Joy’s dad is happy for his daughter. She makes friends easily, and brings a smile to everyone's face. He is proud of her for helping out a fellow student without judgement. After hearing she gave up half her lunch for him, he vows to pack another sandwich, just for his daughter's new friend.

Dave's dad however, is not so happy for Dave. Friends with a human? No. Humans are disgusting, bigoted assholes who'll only use Dave for their own gain. He warns Dave against the ‘friend’, but he doesn't listen. He will have to keep an eye on this ‘friend’.


	2. 6 Years Old. Play Date.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave spends the afternoon at Joy's house.

“Are you excited Dave?” Joy leans across the table, peering over the current artwork her best friend is working on.

The two have been friends for a little over a week. They've talked nonstop, each quickly rising to best friend status. Dave has made friends with Rose and Jade, but has moreso focused his attentions on Joy. They haven't exactly talked about it, but she saved his ass big time. The bullies from Third Grade haven't come for them yet, but Dave knows it's only time.

“A little excited…” Dave replies, fully focused on his drawing.

“Well I am. It's going to be great! Dad's really excited to meet you.” Joy props her head up with her hands, her own drawing lying forgotten on the table.

After school, Dave is going to go over to Joy's house for the afternoon. He's a little nervous, but incredibly excited as he's never been invited to another person's house before.

“I can't wait for the bell to ring!” Joy moans, beginning to kick the table.

“Joy stop it! You're bumping the table! You made me smudge my drawing!” Jade complains, holding up her smudged artwork.

“I'm sorry Jade. I'm just excited.” 

“I'm excited for the weekend too, but you don't see me ruining other people's artworks.” Jade huffs, before quickly adding. “Rose is sleeping over at my house.”

“You've told us a million times!” Joy replies.

“And you've told us Dave's going to your place a million times as well!”

“Okay fine. I'll try to stop bumping the table.” Joy slumps over. “I'm just excited…”

“Are you so excited that Friday Art time doesn't matter?” Rose quips, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes.” Joy huffs, sitting up again and staring directly at Dave. Dave doesn't look back up, continuing to focus on his drawing. Joy can't see what he's drawing exactly from her position, only colours and basic shapes. But it must be pretty good if he's ignoring everything she does to try to get his attention. 

Eventually, after what seems like forever, the bell rings. Joy springs up, grabbing her backpack and swinging it onto her back. Everyone else stares up at her, wondering why she wants to leave in such a hurry when everyone's doing art. The rest of the class is slow to pack up, most of all Dave. This frustrates Joy immensely.

“Come on Dave hurry up!” She nudges Dave's chair with her foot.

“Let me finish my drawing!” Dave protests, hurriedly scribbling in the sky with the blue pencil. 

Joy lets out a long exaggerated groan, slumping on the floor next to Dave. 

“Bye guys, have fun!” Jade grins, getting up from the table and waving at Joy and Dave. “Have a great weekend.”

“You too Jade!” Joy says, voice muffled by the floor. Dave waves at her, still focused on his drawing.

“See you on Monday.” Rose follows Jade’s lead, getting up from the table and waving at her other two friends.

“Done!” Dave slams down his pencil in relief. Before Joy can peer over his shoulder to see what he drew, Dave rolls it up and shoves it in his bag.

“Yeeeees let's go.” Joy tugs at Dave's arm. Begrudgingly, he lets her tug him out of his seat and drag him halfway across the classroom.

“I can walk you know.” Dave complains.

“Sorry.” Joy replies, dropping his arm. “I'm just-”

“Excited?” Dave finishes for her. “Don't worry, I am too. It'll be fun.”

Joy grins, stepping outside of the of the classroom door, waving a goodbye to the teacher. She waves back, relieved that it's friday and she has a break for two days.

Outside the door waiting for the two is Jane Crocker, an impatient look on her face. She's best friends with Dave's brother Dirk and, as Dave learnt the hard way, Joy's twin sister.

“We good to go?” She asks, looking up as her sister walks past. 

“Yep! Sorry Jane, Dave was taking aaaaages.” Joy bounces on the balls of her feet. She begins to walk ahead, forcing Jane and Dave to follow her.

“I was not!”

“You were too!”

“Was not!”

“Was too!”

“I had to finish my drawing!”

“Had to or wanted to?” Joy asks, at the same time her sister asks.

“Oooh, what did you draw?”

“Nothing.” Dave says quickly.

“Oh yeah, what did you draw?” Joy asks, peering over to her friend. “You wouldn't show me.”

“You can show us.” Jane smiles, causing Dave to blush heavily.

“I'll show you later.” He mumbles to Joy quietly, so Jane can't hear.

“Ok!” Joy beams like the sun.

The trio have made it outside the school now, out onto the street. The playground is relatively empty, which really shows how long Dave took on his drawing. Joy’s house is only a block away, so it's not too far to walk. Dave has to walk even further every day, so this walk should be a breeze.

“What are you two going to do when we get home?” Jane asks.

“I dunno. Just hang out I guess.” Joy replies, shrugging her shoulders. “Dad's probably already made snacks though.”

“Snacks?” Dave's head whips around, eyes wide.

“Uh yeah. Dad really likes baking. He makes all kinds of stuff. He puts it in our lunches like everyday.” Joy wrinkles up her nose a little bit. 

“Why are you making that face? I'd love to have baked snacks in my lunchbox every day.”

“Oh no I like them! I just don't like it when he uses packet mixes. They taste funny.”

Dave, who's never had packet mix cake or homemade cake and thus can't tell the difference, just shrugs. 

“I have to disagree with you Joy.” Jane pipes up. “All of Dad's creations are delicious, packet mix or no.”

Joy scrunches up her entire face. “Gross.”

Dave tunes out their bickering, having heard it all before in different forms with his own brother. Instead he focuses on his surroundings. He has no idea where Joy's house is exactly, but he knows it's somewhere around here. Joy lives in a nice part of town. Cherry Grove Road, a nice name for the nice part of town. Two story houses with blooming gardens and picket fences line both sides of the street. It's very different from the apartment block Dave lives in, in the shitty, shifter-ridden part of town, right on the highway.

Joy and Jane suddenly turn into the driveway of a house. Dave follows, looking up at their house. Like all the other houses on the street, it has got two storeys and a beautiful garden filled with blooming roses of various colours.

Joy and Jane stop at the door, shuffling around to take their shoes off. Awkwardly, Dave does too, placing his ratty sneakers next to Joy and Jane's pretty blue sandals. 

The door opens, revealing a rather tall, very well dressed and slightly fat man holding a plate full of muffins.

“Dad!” Joy throws herself at his leg, holding tight while her dad rubs her back in greeting. “This is Dave!”

“Nice to meet you.” Dave nods, watching as Jane joins in on the hug.

“It's nice to meet you finally. Joy's been talking about you all week.”

“Not all week!” Joy protests, breaking away from her dad.

“You have too!” Jane says, pointing an accusatory finger at her sister. “You wouldn't stop talking about him!”

Joy blushes, avoiding the smug smirk on Dave's face.

“Would you like to come in?” Joy's dad asks, stepping aside to let the three children in. Joy rushes in, followed closely by Dave, then Jane. Dad smiles, closing the door behind them. “I made some choc-chip muffins especially for today.”

The front of the house leads to the living room. A comfy looking couch covered in cushions stands in the centre of the room. Stairs lead up to the second floor of the house, while some western saloon type doors lead into another room. A fireplace of all things is in the living room, wood in the fireplace but not fire to be seen. On top of the fireplace is a mantelpiece full of photos with a single urn on top.

“They smell good dad.” Jane smiles. “I'll help you with them then head off to my room and leave these two alone.”

“Why thank you Jane.” Dad smiles. “You two wait here, I'll be back with the muffins.” Dad heads into the room with the western saloon doors, assumedly the kitchen, followed closely by Jane.

 

Joy jumps up onto the couch, gesturing for Dave to join her. He does, and almost gasps at the level of comfort. This couch is immaculate, with cushions so comfortable that you could sink into them. The one he has at home is covered in take-out stains, with cushions as hard as rocks.

“So what were you drawing?” Joy asks. 

“Oh yeah…” Dave unzips his backpack, pulling out the rolled up piece of paper. He unfurls it, before showing John.

Two figures stand on a hill together underneath a tree of miscellaneous genus. The sun shines up above them, wearing some cool sunglasses. The first figure has two plait like protrusions from her head, squares for eyes and a triangle shaped blue dress. The second figure is taller and paler, wearing pointy shades and a red and white t-shirt.

“It's us!” Joy exclaims excitedly.

“It is.” Dave says, embarrassed his work is under such scrutiny.

“And the art topic this week was best friends!”

“Yeah.”

“And you drew us!”

“Well, you are my best friend.” Dave nervously shares Joy's smile.

“That looks very good Dave, did you draw it?” Dad's deep voice sounds from behind them.

“Yeah I did.” Dave says, still embarrassed, but proud now.

“I'm sure you parents would love that on the fridge. You're very talented.”

“No. My dad doesn't like that kind of stuff. He says it's shit.” Dave shrugs, beginning to roll it back up.

“Oh…” Dad says, physically taken aback. “Well Dave, I would gladly have this on my fridge.”

“Thanks Mr Joy's Dad.”

Joy's dad laughs, setting the muffin down on the coffee table. “You can just call me dad if you'd like. Joy's other friends do.”

“They do.” Joy confirms, responding to Dave's look.

“Okay then.” Dave swoops in and grabs a muffin, shoving it all in his mouth and spraying crumbs everywhere.

“Ewwwww! That's gross!” Joy complains, lightly shoving Dave.

“Nnnno ittsh delischioush!” Dave corrects through a mouthful of food. “Ittsh honeshttly the beshtt tthing I've ever eattennnn.”

“I'm glad you like it Dave.” Dad says, smiling the thin lipped smile of adulthood. “I just wish my daughter felt the same.”

“I like it!” Joy protests. “I just don't like packet mix!” 

“How do you even know if it is packet mix?” Dave asks, voice normal again because he's finished his muffin.

“I can smell it. It smells weird.” 

“You smell weird.” Dave replies, in defence of dad's cooking.

“No you smell weird!”

“No, you smell weird!”

“No, you smell weird!”

Dad chuckles, ruffling his daughter's hair affectionately. “I'll leave you two here to have fun. Dave, is your father picking you up?”

“Nope, I have to walk home.” Dave says, as if that's a normal thing a six year old has to do at night.

“No, I'll drive you home.” Dad says, concerned for this child. No lunch, no one to pick him up, all talents criticised-this does not sound good.

“Thanks but you don't have to--”

“No buts, I'm driving you home.” Dad says quickly. “Anyway have fun you two.” He leaves the room, heading back into the kitchen.

 

“So what do you want to do?” Joy asks, turning to look at her friend. “Do you want to play outside?”

“Sure, just lemme finish my muffin.” 

“What muffin, you already had o--oh.” As Joy says this, Dave grabs the muffin and shoves the entire thing in his mouth.

“Gross.” Joy hops off the couch, walking towards the door.

“Hey wait up!” Dave cries, hurrying after his friend. Joy unlocks the door and the pair hurry outside.

The garden is still beautiful and filled with blooms, not that Dave knows much about flowers. He knows there are roses, and that's about it. He recognises some daisies as well, clumped around the base of a big tree. He the notices what is truly the main attraction of the garden-the tire swing.

“Holy shit you have a tire swing. How did I miss that?” Dave gasps, hurrying over to admire it.

“I know isn't it cool?! I reckon a back yard isn't complete without one!” Joy joins him, clambering onto the swing. It sways at her weight, just like a swing is supposed to.

Dave clambers onto the other side of the swing, causing it to wobble even more. Joy maneuvers herself so that her legs and arms are wrapped around the tire, facing Dave.

“So.” She says.

“So?” Dave replies, wrapping his own arms and legs around the tire, copying her position. 

“Let's play truth or dare.”

“What? Why?”

“I dunno. It'll be fun.”

“Okay then I'll go first. I dare you to lick the tire swing.” Dave says smugly, that dare being the best he could come up within the span of five seconds.

Joy shrugs. “Really? That's all? Jane makes me do worse things.” Without hesitation, she licks the tire. 

“Oh…”

“Now it's my turn. I dare you to climb up onto the roof.”

“What?”

“You heard me.” 

“But I…”

“What, you scared?”

Dave looks from Joy to the roof, back and forth multiple times. He's contemplating something, little brain whirring at 100 miles an hour. He could very easily win this dare by shifting, but should he risk Joy's judgement?

Joy begins to chant “Dave is a scaredy cat!” very loudly and Dave makes up his mind.

In the blink of an eye, he's a snow white crow, sawing into the sky with a triumphant caw before landing on the roof. Joy almost falls off the tire swing in amazement, and because of the weight imbalance.

“Whoa....” She gasps in amazement before coming to her senses. “Hey! You cheated! I said climb the roof, not fly up to it!”

Dave swoops back down, landing in his human form. He clenches his fist, focusing on not messing it up. Turning into the crow was more exhausting than he thought. He's going to need a break from shifting soon. “Well actually, I climbed the sky with my wings to get onto the roof. So I didn't cheat.”

Joy makes a face, contemplating it before shrugging and forgetting it. She dashes forward and lightly taps Dave on the shoulder.

“You're it!”

She dashes off, leaving Dave spluttering in surprise. He quickly comes to his senses and chases after her. She weaves in and out of the rose bushes that line the path to the door. He manages to hit every single one. She laughs, carefree and innocent. He follows her, determined. He corners her at the edge of a flowerbed. She tries to skirt around him but he tags her.

Now it is his turn to dash off. She's hot on his heels, still laughing. With a leaping bound, she tackles him to the ground and the two go tumbling into the grass.

Dave joins in on her laughter. She's lying on top of him, grass sticking out of her hair and a wide grin on her face. Her glasses are lopsided, and he thinks he lost his shades somewhere in the rose bushes.

“Do you wanna watch a movie?” She asks, righting her glasses. She rolls off of him, joining him lying on his back staring at the sky.

“What movie?”

“Hmm, we have The Lego Movie and some Disney movies.” 

“I'd rather The Lego Movie. Why would I want to watch Disney?”

“I don't know, Disney movies are good?”

“I'll let you keep thinking that.”

Joy sits up, pulling Dave up with her. She leads him down the path back into the house. Along the way, Dave picks up his shades, lying next to a rose bush. They're a little dirty, but he wipes it off on his t-shirt.

The two reenter the house, Joy heading straight for the kitchen.

“Dad can you please set up The Lego Movie for us?”

“Sure sweetheart, just give me a second, alright?” Dad says, in the process of chopping up a carrot.

“What are you making Mr Joy's Dad?” Dave asks, peering curiously at the carrot. 

“I'm chopping up vegetables for dinner. I'm going to put carrots, peas, corn, beans, cauliflower and broccoli on the boil. Then I'll add some beef, and put it on some steamed rice. Lastly I'll add some sauce I made for on top. Just something simple for tonight I'm afraid.” Dad answers. Something simple? That doesn't sound simple. Ordering takeout is simple. Actually cooking something with homemade sauces and everything isn't.

“That sounds nice.” Dave replies cautiously.

“Does your father want you back at a specific time? If not, you can have dinner here.”

“Yeeeessss!” Joy shouts, jumping for, well, joy.

“He doesn't care.” Dave replies, flattered by Joy's dads offer. “And...I would like to stay for dinner. Thank you for the offer.”

“That's great. I'm glad to have you over.” Dad sets down the knife and heads into the living room, followed by his daughter and her friend.

Both children watch with their full attention as Dad sets up the DVD. He shoos them to the couch, telling them to be patient. Once the DVD is set up, Dad stands up.

“I'll have snacks for you ready in just a bit.” He heads out of the room.

“Thanks dad!” Joy calls.

 

The movie begins.

The two children watch with wide eyes and open mouths, hardly notices when Dad brings in snacks and lays a blanket over the two children.

The movie is hilarious, filled with action and surprisingly deep for a kids movie. Not that Joy and Dave get the deepness of the plot. They're there for the toilet humour, lego themes and epic action. They eat all their snacks, huddling together during the intense scenes.

They laugh at Emmet's morning routine. They gasp in fear when Emmet is captured, but sigh in relief when he's rescued by Wildstyle. Joy likes the western town, while Dave likes it when Batman appears. They both don't like Cloud City, but still tear up when all the master builders are captured. They love the break in scene. They both start to cry when Emmet falls to his doom, and when the human father and his son confront each other.

The credits snap them out of the movie trance they had entered, especially when Dad taps them on the shoulders.

“Dinners ready.”

“Yeeesssss.” Joy hisses, sliding off the couch and dashing into the kitchen. Dave follows her, not exactly sure where he's going, but figuring she'd know.

Joy heads out the back door, pausing it to hold it open for Dave. 

“Thanks.” Stepping through, he notes the medium sized deck and the dining table, already laid out with four hot plates of food. It smells delicious, like heaven itself wafting up into his nostrils.

Jane is already seated, politely waiting for everyone else to sit down. Dad walks out from behind Joy and Dave to sit next to Jane. This leaves Joy and Dave to sit together. The two get seated, and Dad begins pouring a glass of water for everyone on the table.

“Now I hope you like it.” Dad says directly to Dave. “It's low effort on my part, but it's Friday, and I'm using that as an excuse.”

“It's fine. We usually just have takeout at home.” Dave replies. Upon seeing everyone else at the table beginning to eat, he digs in as well. It's as delicious as it smells. The sauce is really what makes the dish.

“You should see the stuff Dad makes on a normal day!” Joy says around a mouthful of food.

“I'd like that.” Dave says, taking a break from shovelling the food into his mouth. 

“Great! Then it's decided. You'll come over more often.” Joy decides. Her decision is more a demand really, but Dave finds he doesn't care.

Dad chuckles in amusement at his daughter. She's very good at making friends.

Dave and Joy wolf down the food in front of them, as if they're holding a competition to see who could eat it the fastest. They're not, but the food is just that good. Very soon, it's all gone.

Both their plates are shining white, scraped clean of all food. They lean back simultaneously, watching Jane and Dad with tired eyes. They're eating slowly, like normal people. 

Dave's eyes flutter shut. It's been a long day, he's tired. He still keeps that focus on maintaining his human form, but just lets himself drift on for one second…

The next thing he knows, he's being gently shook awake by Dad, with Joy telling him to wake up.

“C’mon Dave, time for you to go home.” Dad says with a smile. Dave blinks blearily, shrugging away the sleepiness. “You weren't out that long. You just fell asleep during dinner, that's all.”

“Ok.” Dave gets off the chair, taking little sleepy, stumbly steps.

“Jane's already in the car, but I'm driving you home okay? What's your address?” Dad begins to lead Dave and Joy to the car, passing through the house and locking the front and back doors of the house behind them. 

“116 Moonview Highway. Top floor.” Dave tells Dad, sleepily piling into the back of the car. Joy hops in beside him, Jane having already claimed the front seat.

“That's not too far.” Dad smiles, clipping in his seat belt before driving off. “Only a five minute drive.”

Dave turns to Joy. “Thank you for inviting me over. It was fun.” 

“No problem! I had fun too. I'd really like to do it again some time.”

“That sounds good.”

“Maybe at your house next time?” 

Dave freezes, suddenly ashamed of his own living conditions upon seeing Joy's. “Maybe...maybe some other time.”

“Okay!”

The two drift into silence. Dave watches out the window as buildings whizz past. It's getting dark out. Their way is lit mostly by streetlights, warm, flickering yellow light. Rather quickly, buildings turn familiar, and Dad is pulling up in front of Dave's apartment block.

“Do you want us to walk you in?” Dad asks. Dave shakes his head, thankful enough for the ride and not wanting to inconvenience Joy's dad any further.

“Thank you for having me.” Dave says awkwardly, hand hovering above the car door handle. “And for the lift home.”

“You're welcome Dave.” Dad smiles. “Anytime.”

“Bye Dave!” Joy leans forward and gives him a quick hug. “Have a good weekend!” 

“You too.” Dave hops out of the car, and with one last wave, disappears into the building behind him.

 

By anytime, Dad means anytime. After that first successful play date, Dave and Joy make a tradition of having a play date every friday afternoon. These, after a few months, turn into a weekly sleepover tradition.

This tradition is sacred to the two. It is truly a monument to their friendship, and, like a statue, is strong and can stand the tests of time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haha what year is this set and where is it set? Who knows honestly. Somewhere like America but not. Somewhen like the nineties/early 2000s but not.  
> Its set in an alternate reality okay guys.
> 
> Anyway I hope you enjoy!


	3. 7 Years Old. Play Date. Dave Edition.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joy goes over to Dave's house this time.

Today's the day. Finally, after a year of pestering, Joy is going over to Dave's house.

Not so much pestering, more asking persistently. After a year of playdates and sleepovers at Joy's house, Dave finally said it was only fair Joy came over to his place and invited her.

Dave lives on the top floor of a large apartment building. A ten storey apartment building. Luckily for Joy and Dad, there's an elevator that takes them up to the top floor. This means they don't have to take all the stairs.

It's a Saturday, which breaks the tradition Joy and Dave share. But that is getting broken today anyway, as the play date is at Dave's house.

The elevator dings open, revealing a narrow corridor with four doors leading to the different apartments on the floor.

“It's definitely room 3 right?” Dad asks, looking down at his daughter for confirmation.

“Yeah.” Joy nods, huddling closer to her dad. Something about this corridor gives her the heebie-jeebies. 

Dad knocks on the door, ruffling his daughter's hair reassuringly. A shout of ‘I'll get it!’ and footsteps steadily approaching sound from behind the door. Theres the sound of locks being unlocked, and then the door swings open to reveal Dave.

“Dave!” Joy beams, stepping out from behind her dad's leg.

“Hey Joy.” Dave replies, unsuccessfully trying to hide his smile. “You want to come in?”

“Hello Dave, it's nice to see you. Now I'll see you later Joy.” Dad hugs his daughter in farewell. “I'll pick you up in a few hours, okay? I love you.”

“Ok bye dad!” Joy wiggles out of his hug a little bit, moreso focused on her best friend.

“Have fun.” Dad gets up to leave, waving at both children. As he leaves, Joy enters Dave's apartment.

It's...a bit different to what she was expecting. She knows this is area doesn't have the best living conditions, but even all the stuff Dave said couldn't prepare her for this.

It's cluttered and crowded. Pizza boxes and empty bottles of soda litter the floor, which obviously is just getting the light of day now. A few trash bags lie half full on the floor, and Joy gets the feeling Dave was cleaning up for her arrival.

To the left side of the door, a series of cupboards and a sink, oven and fridge line the wall, separated from the rest of the room by a bench. Obviously this is a kitchen. The rest of the room is the living room, Joy assumes. It's got the usual living room things, a TV, a couch, a mysterious lump on the couch, a DVD rack and posters on the walls.

She gets a prickle on the back of her neck, as if something is watching her.

“Welcome to Chateau du Strider.” Dave says nervously, spreading his arms out.

“It's nice. I like it. Very homey.” Joy says a little white lie to not make Dave upset. He'd obviously put effort into cleaning up for her.

A relieved smile crosses Dave's features. “Do you want a little tour?”

“That would be nice.”

“Ok so this” Dave gestures to the room around the two. “Is the living room slash kitchen. I um, tried to clean up, but you came a bit earlier than I was expecting.”

“Sorry! Dad always says better early than late.” Joy replies, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment. 

“No it's fine. Just took me off guard that's all. Anyway, this is the living room. The main points of interest are the TV, the couch and the collection of movies that's way better than yours.” Dave points to each attraction as they're listed.

“That's not true!” Joy protests wholeheartedly. “We have a whole shelf filled with all the classics!”

“Well we have whole shelves filled with really rare stuff you won't find in stores!”

“Yeah? Like what?”

“Like ‘Hot Space Invaders Mark Their Territory’ and ‘Sweet Bedroom Loving-Watersports Edition’.”

“They don't sound very good.” Joy makes a face, clearly unimpressed.

“I dunno if they are or not. I've only walked in on my father watching them a few times.”

The pricking feeling on the back of Joy's neck increases tenfold. Dave lets in a sharp intake of breath as a man steps into the room.

He's tall and wiry, with pale skin and whitish-grey hair. His eyes are covered by pointy anime shades, much like Dave and Dirk’s are. Joy can see the family resemblance between the three, despite Dirk’s flaming red hair. Despite the fact his eyes are covered, Joy knows he's glaring down at her.

“U-” Dave squeaks, before coughing and trying again. “ Dad, this is Joy.”

The man continues to glare down at her, keeping his gaze fixed on her as he strides over to the kitchen. Dave meets his gaze in a challenge. This man is so tall, she barely comes up to his knee. Understandably, she's kind of scared of this man.

 

“Let's go to my room.” Dave says suddenly, dropping eye contact with the man and grabbing Joy's hand. Before she can protest, he's dragging her across the apartment, through to another corridor. He turns into the second door on the left, clicking the latch behind them.

His room, as evidenced by the bunk bed in the corner, is not entirely his room. The room is half and half, half neat and organised and half an absolute mess. A laptop sits on a desk right next to a door, desk covered with little trinkets and such. Towards the window is a set of turntables, huge and new with the cords covering every inch of the floor.

“Was umm...that your dad?” Joy hangs at the edge of the room, a little uncomfortable. Dave on the other hand is totally comfortable in his own room.He walks up to the bunk bed, climbing up the ladder and onto the bed itself. With a shaky huff, he climbs under the covers and completely covers himself in them.

“Yeah.” Dave's voice comes out muffled, but it sounds different than it normally does.

“Oh.” Wanting to change the subject, Joy says the first thing that comes into her mind. “Where's your brother? You share the room with him, right?”

“He was in the living room. You know the lump you saw on the couch? That was him.”

“Like the lump I see on your bed now?” Joy teases, edging a little further away from the door and moreso towards the window.

“Sorry I'm...tired.” Dave says, but that sounds moreso like an excuse than anything.

“Okay.” Joy decides not to question it. This kind of tired thing Dave goes on about has been happening a lot lately.

Instead, she turns her gaze to outside the window.

Dave has a nice view, with his apartment being on the tenth storey and all. The city sprawls out around him. Joy can see the faint hints of the suburbia she lives in. Mostly, she can see the other apartment blocks, the ones closer in her vision being the worst ones. Joy fixes her gaze on a flock of crows, soaring past without a care in the world. It's a bit weird to see a whole bunch of them in the city like this, but this is the shifter part of town, maybe they're a whole bunch of shifters out for a fly? Dave likes to be a crow more often than anything else.

“Hey Dave?” Joy asks.

“Yes Joy?” Dave replies, peeking out of the covers a little bit. 

“That flock of crows out there...are they shifters?”

“Jesus Joy. You can't just see an animal and assume it's a shifter. That's just not on.” Dave presumably shakes his head.

“I'm sorry!” Joy gasps in embarrassment. “I just assumed…”

“Don't worry, I was pulling your leg. Yeah, some of them are shifters. Not all though. They like me, especially the bread I give them.”

“Oh.” Joy sighs, relieved. 

She turns away from the window, instead focusing on Dave's bed. How rude, he's still hiding under the covers. A little annoyed, she climbs up the ladder herself. He begins to protest, especially when she starts pulling the covers off his head. He tries to pull them back, but she's much stronger than him. The covers are pulled back to reveal Dave. The true Dave.

She hasn't seen him like this since they first met. It's been so long that she'd almost forgotten that he was in fact constantly shifting. He's vaguely human shaped, but he's also a strange mishmash of several different animals. He appears more birdlike than anything else. He has a beak, with his shoulders, back and head covered in feathers. On his back are two tiny little baby wings. His arms are the long, gnarly arms of a crow, with thick claws the the ends of his hands. They clutch a tail tightly, covered in white fur and drawn to his chest. His eyes are very feline like, with little slits for the eyes. His ears are also feline like, twitching erratically. His stomach is covered in a fine fur, with transfers into silvery scales on his legs. Joy distinctly remembers there being tentacles last time, but perhaps she remembered wrong.

The crest of feathers around his neck are fluffed up, indicating he's scared.

“I-I’m sorry! I need to conserve energy! I can't look like a human all the time!” Dave cries, flattening himself against the wall.

“No Dave it's ok! It's my fault, I thought you were just being a sook and sulking in bed.” Joy reaches a hand out and takes Dave's hand in her own.

Dave looks down at their joined hands, slitted pupils blown wide. He starts breathing erratically, trembling like crazy.

“Come on Dave, deep breaths.” Joy soothes, rubbing his clawed hands with her thumb. “It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you.”

Dave shuts his eyes, focusing on his breathing. Joy continues to try to calm him down, copying what her dad does to her. Slowly, after about ten minutes or so, Dave calms down a bit. His breathing has slowed and he's stopped trembling. He's still in his true form, but Joy doesn't care.

Still holding his hand, she shuffles around to sit next to him. 

“I'm sorry…” Dave mumbles. “I've had to hold my human form for so long and it hurts so much. I was just trying to take a break for a minute.”

“Don't be sorry.” Joy scowls fiercely. “And you shouldn't push yourself like that. You shouldn't have to either.”

“Joy.” Dave chuckles in a dry way. “Look at me.”

“I'm looking at you.”

“Joy, I can't be out in public like this.”

“Why not?”

“Joy, I know you're trying to be nice and all, but stop. I can't be seen in public like this. I have a goddamn birds head with cat ears. I have claws, and gross teeth and I may look human most of the time, but I'm not. I'm a monster and a murderer.” Dave's back to shaking, with it growing more and more violent as he raises his voice. Joy has no idea what to say, so she just squeezes his hand tighter. “And my only chance to be normal is to shift into a human form every day. But it hurts so much.”

“Come here Dave…” Joy says sadly, wrapping her arms around him and pulling the blankets around them both so they're nice and snug. “You're not a monster, and you're definitely not a murderer.”

“Tell that to my mother. Dad says I killed her. Mutant shifters kill those giving birth to them.” Dave rubs his eyes with a clawed hand.

Joy pulls him in closer, still not knowing what to say. Instead, she tries to convey her disagreement in hug form.

Dave falls silent, appreciating Joy's hug and the warmth around him.

“I don't really know about any of this shifter stuff.” Joy says, finally finding her voice. “But I know you're not a murderer. I know you're my best friend. And I know Rose and Jade consider you their best friend too. I know you're not a monster. Just because you don't look human doesn't mean you're a monster. And either way I don't care what you look like because you're still my best friend.”

Dave smiles, well, the best he can with a beak. “Thanks. Sorry, this playdates been kind of shit, hasn't it?”

“It's not over yet. And it's been okay.”

“What do you want to do? We could go to the park a few blocks away.” Dave suggests, shaking off the blankets.

“Yeah that sounds fun!” Joy agrees.

Dave shifts into his human form, but something goes wrong. He flickers in and out of forms, eyes squeezed shut in concentration.

“Dave!” Joy cries, placing a hand on his back. 

Dave sags and crumples up, staying in his true form. “Still too tired. I can't shift back just yet.” 

“That's okay! We can stay inside and watch movies if you'd like.”

“No. I don't want to go out there. He doesn't like me like this.”

“Then....let's build a blanket fort!” Joy says, jumping up. “And then we can nap in there and you can feel all better again!”

“Okay!” 

 

Dave starts by yanking the blankets off his bed, tossing them on the floor below alongside the multiple pillows on his bed. Joy slides down the ladder, using the bunk beds, the desk and two chairs to to build the structural support of the fort. She lines the floor with pillows and Dave's doona for comfort. It's a pretty big fort, spanning approximately a third of the room. Luckily, there's enough blanket on both Dave and Dirk’s bed to span it. They have to be connected to each other with paper clips and pegs.

Despite Joy having made the entire thing, Dave is the first to dive inside.

Joy quickly follows, crawling in through the ‘entrance’ to the fort.

Dave is sprawled across the pillows in the area closest to the bed. Rumbling purrs seem to come from him as his tail lazily flicks side to side.

Joy crawls on her belly over to him. She lays beside him, joining him in staring up at the blanket roof. She feels something thin and furry curl around her wrist. Looking down, she grins when she realises it's Dave's tail.

“You're my best friend Dave. Well, Rose and Jade are my best friends too, but you're my number one best friend.”

“You're my number one best friend too Joy.”

Joy grins a little lazily, eyes drifting shut. “I'm glad I met you.”

“I'm gladder I met you.” Dave closes his eyes too. He knows this is the truth. Without Joy, he'd still be the bullied, friendless weirdo. Now he has not one but three best friends, the bullies have surprisingly left them alone and...well, Dave's still a weirdo, despite his protests, but now he's a weirdo with friends. He truly is glad he met Joy.

“Okay Dave, this isn't a competition.” Despite her words, there is no venom in her voice.

The two curl up a little closer under the blanket fort. Dave, exhausted beyond compare from shifting all the time, drifts off first. Joy is soon to join him.

They're both out like lights, the only sound coming from the blanket fort being soft snores and loud purring.

  
Later, when Dad returns to pick Joy up, he finds his daughter curled up with Dave and smiles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! Please tell me if you like my fic so far or not! And thanks for the support so far!


	4. 8 Years Old. Haircut.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joy gets a haircut. Dave says she looks like a boy.  
> Also Rose pretends to know what the fuck was going on during an Othello stage play she saw with her mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the beginning of Joy realising shes trans. The chapters are going to come out pretty quick as each chapters pretty short?  
> Just a quick heads up, I am not trans, so if I get anything wrong, please don't hesitate to tell me! I want to get things right, and I don't want to get things wrong or offend anyone.

“How was your weekend Jade? Dave?” Rose asks her friends, the picture of someone trying to act elegant and poised. Of course, her friends are ever oblivious to her act of knowing everything.

Dave shrugs, as if nothing happened on the weekend, which is not the case. He did a lot of things, but it's uncool to gush about things like a huge nerd.

“It was great! Me, Jake and Grandad went on a big camping trip by a river! It was so cool, we went fishing and hiking and swimming and toasted marshmallows by the fire!” Jade gushes.

It's Monday, and the four friends each had a great weekend. Well, Joy's running a little late, which is unusual for her, but presumably she had a good weekend as well.

“If any are you are interested, I slept over at Joy's house.” Dave pipes in, suddenly deciding to tell everyone about his weekend.

“We know Dave, you  _ always _ sleep over at Joy's house every weekend.” Jade rolls her eyes.

“And you always tell us.” Rose continues. “As if we were sheep that didn't know any better.”

“Well anyway, we had a fun time.” Dave sulks.

“Hey Rose, you've asked us what we did on the weekend, but you never told us what you did. What did you do on the weekend?” Jade ignores Dave, focusing on Rose. Rose seems to preen a little under Jades gaze.

“Why thank you for asking Jade. I had a great time. I went to see a theatre show with my mother and sister. It was Shakespeare.” Rose holds her head up proudly. She's pretending like she understood what they were saying during the performance. Honestly, she had no idea what was going on.

“Woah! That's so cool!” Jade gasps, eyes wide and excited. “What one did you watch?”

“Oh just Othello.” Rose brushes it off. “It was quite interesting. It delved into the human psyche. Truly a masterpiece.”

“Hey, where's Joy?” Dave asks. Joy hasn't arrived at school yet. She better come soon, she's late.

“Hey guys!” Speak of the devil, there she is. “Sorry I'm late, we all slept in!” 

Joy looks very different today. She's wearing shorts and a t-shirt, which she never does, and she's cut her hair. Before it was long, halfway down her back, and usually tied up with blue ribbons in twin plaits. Now it barely reaches the bottom of her ears. It's very curly, floofing up in uncontrollable tufts.

“Notice anything different about me?” Joy beams, waving her hands around her head. Obviously she wants them to compliment her hair. Obviously, Rose, Jade and Dave aren't going to do that.

“Do you have more freckles?” Dave squints at Joy's face. There's innumerous amounts of freckles on her face, no one would even notice if a few more popped up.

“No Dave, it's obviously her new glasses.” Jade rolls her eyes, mock-disappointed in him. Joy is wearing the same glasses as she was last year, and the year before that.

“Hmmm, this is a hard one. Is it perhaps new earrings?” Rose says after a lot of consideration. Joy has never worn earrings in her life, seeing as her ears aren't pierced.

“What? No! I don't even have my ears pierced! I got a haircut!” Joy huffs in indignation, folding her arms to her chest.

“We're joking Joy, you look nice.” Rose smiles at her friend. 

“Yeah! I like your new hairstyle, it suits you.” Jade pipes in.

“You look like a boy.” Dave says very bluntly. He quickly tries to cover this up upon seeing Rose and Jade's glares and Joy's hurt expression. “A very pretty boy though.”

“What? No I don't!” Joy protests, cheeks darkening.

“No like the shorts and short hair make you look like a boy. Before you always wore skirts and dresses and stuff like that. And your hair was super long and now it's really short. What made you cut your hair?” Dave begins to ramble, but luckily for the other three it's only a short rant this time.

“I dunno, just felt like it.” Joy shrugs. “It...looks nice though right?”

“Yeah it looks good. I don't have a problem that you look like a boy.” Dave grins smugly.

“Hey!” Joy punches him lightly on the arm. “I do not, leave me alone!” 

Dave laughs at her, reaching down to ruffle her now very short hair. It's very easy for him to do seeing as he is much taller than her.

The bell rings out through the school, meaning that the school day has started. Turns out Joy wasn't that late to school, but still later than she usually is, as she's usually the first one there.

 

Dejectedly, the four walk into the main building. But, as Joy walks to class alongside her friends, she can't help but mull over what Dave said.

She looks like a boy? What's that supposed to mean? Just because she cut her hair? And wore a pair of shorts instead of a skirt like usual? What's wrong with looking like a boy? And why is she so torn up about this? One of Dave's jokes has never affected her this badly before.

All these questions, without an answer to be found. 

Well, the answer is going to come soon, because Joy has maths class first, which is the perfect opportunity to tune out and consider the answers.

Unfortunately for Joy, those questions aren't answered until much, much later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please enjoy and tell me what you think!  
> I feel like the kids are a little ooc, but that's bc theyre young and still developing? Over the course of the fic, theyll grow and change as people bc thats pretty much what this fic is about.


	5. 9 Years Old. Learning about new things.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joy learns what being trans is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy!  
> I feel like this is a bit cliché and boring but w/e, its fine.

Saturday night TV dinners while your sister is away at a sleepover at her best friend's house is the best thing ever. Especially when your dad gets reeeeally lazy and cooks prepackaged fish and chips in the oven.

Joy sets down the condiments and knives and forks for the coffee table. She's already chosen a movie for her and dad to watch. It's an indie film of some kind, Joy isn't really sure. It seems to be pretty much the only thing on that seems to be worth watching, which is unusual for a Saturday night.

Dad enters the living room, carrying two plates laden with chips, vegetables and crumbed fish. He sets them down on the coffee table, joining his daughter on the couch.

“What are we watching?” Dad asks, shaking the salt shaker over his chips.

“I don't know. Some indie film.” Joy shrugs. “I don't know what it's about.”

While setting the table, she'd more focused on the camerawork than the plot. But, as she eats her chips and actually looks at what's happening on screen, she becomes a little confused.

There's a young boy and his family eating dinner. However, the young boys family keep referring to him as ‘her’ and by a girl's name. The boy grits his teeth at every use of ‘her’, and avoiding the gaze of his family.

“Dad...what's going on? Why are they calling him a girl?” Joy asks, more than a little confused.

“Well Joy.” Dad coughs, clearing his throat as if delaying answering. “Some people in our world is what is known as transgender.” 

“What's that?”

“It's when you were assigned one sex at birth, but you're really the other.” Dad seems embarrassed for some reason.

“Oh. So like they look like a girl, but they're really a boy?” Joy asks, ever full of questions.

“Uh, yes.” Dad coughs once more, scooping up a spoonful of vegetables and putting them in his mouth.

“Oh, okay.” Joy says, turning her attention back to her dinner and her food.

 

But her little mind is whirring. How does someone know if they're transgender or not? Are they just told? Do they just magically know? 

What is she was transgender? Oh god. That time when she cut her hair and Dave said she looked like a boy? What if she is a boy? What if she's been a boy all this time and never even known?

Joy chomps on a chip, deep in thought. If she was completely honest with herself, there are times where she'd prefer to be a boy than a girl. Like in PE when she's stuck with the girls in the gym playing indoor soccer while the boys get to play tackle football. Or when the dresses and skirts Dad dresses her in bunch up and twist and are generally uncomfortable.

It would be nicer to be a boy. Just in general though. It...it doesn't mean she is one.

 

Joy continues watching attentively. She hardly tastes her food, nor does she notice when her plate is empty.

The plot isn't the best, and the acting is kind of terrible (not that she's ever noticed or cared about a thing like that) but the plight of the trans boy strikes a chord with her. He struggles finding acceptance in his family and with his friends. She's never had problems with her friends or her family, but somehow, she feels like she can relate to him. Like they share some mutual comradery. Mutual comradery? Where did that come from?

Dad stares at his daughter, wondering what's going on inside her mind. This movie seems to have triggered something inside of her. He shakes his head, getting up from the couch and collecting the dinner plates.

Joy watches the movie through, curled up on the couch. Long, long after its finished, she still can't stop thinking about it. It haunts her all weekend.

What does it all mean? Is she...is she maybe transgender?


	6. 9 Years Old. Telling Friends.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joy discusses the possibility of her being a boy to her friends.

The cafeteria is alive with the sound of laughter and the clinking of lunch trays and cutlery. Joy, Rose, Dave and Jade all sit at their usual table, casually chatting away.

Well, Rose, Dave and Jade are casually chatting away. Joy is nervously debating whether or not to tell her friends what she thought about last night. They're her friends right? They'd accept her, right? But, on that movie, the boys friends rejected him…

They're talking about that new episode of Mega Robo Fighting Force, but Joy doesn't have the heart to join in, despite it being her favourite show.

Luckily, or unluckily, Rose notices her friends plight. “Hey Joy, what's wrong? You look upset.”

Three pairs of eyes turn to Joy. Well, she guesses now is the best time to say something since all eyes are on her.

“I was watching that movie last night. You know, the one on SBS? The drama about the transgender boy trying to find acceptance? It got me thinking. And I um...ithinkimightnotbeagirl.” She gushes out in a rush.

“What did you just say?” Dave frowns. Rose and Jade turn to Joy, equal confusion in their faces.

Joy slumps down in her seat. She was afraid of this. Afraid of her friends not accepting her...him? Who knows, this is still very confusing.

“No Joy don't get all mopey, you spoke so fast I couldn't understand you. Please slow down, Sonic the Hedgehog.” Dave nudges her on the arm, giving her the strength to continue on.

“I said…” Joy takes a deep breath. “I said I don't think I'm a girl.”

“What are you then?” Jade asks, curious as to what her friend means.

“I-I don't know.” Joy shakes her head. “It's all so confusing.”

“That's okay Joy.” Rose leans forward to pat Joy's hand. “If you still want to be called that.”

“Why wouldn't I? That's my name.” Joy frowns in confusion.

“Well, if you're confused about whether or not you're transgender, what some people generally do is work out names and pronouns.” Rose answers. She's obviously trying to be comforting but her words only serve to make Joy even more confused.

“What.” Joy hadn't thought too hard about pronouns or names or whatever, moreso the possibility of being a boy.

Rose sighs in irritation, mainly because her friend can be so dense sometimes. “Do you want to stick with she/her like you have all your life, or use he/him instead?”

“I don't know.” Joy sighs, putting her head in her hands. “I thought talking to you guys about it would help, but it's made me more confused.”

“Oh Joy…” Jade switches sides on the table, sitting next to Joy to give her a comforting hug. 

Much to her embarrassment, tears begin to roll down her cheeks.

Dave, who's spent most of this conversation quietly mulling over Joy's words, snaps into action. He doesn't understand what the fuck anyones talking about, he's never even heard of a girl being a boy before, but right now his best friend is crying and he's gonna comfort her, girl or boy.

Dave joins Jade in hugging Joy. “Hey it's okay, don't cry, I have no idea what the fucks going on either. We can be confused as fuck together.”

This draws a laugh from a shaking Joy. She sits up, wiping tears from her eyes. 

“Yeah!” Jade joins in. “I don't really know what's going on either, but I promise to support you no matter what!”

“I second that.” Dave agrees. “After all, you accepted me.”

“Well I third it. Don't be afraid to tell us. We're your friends Joy, we'll support you no matter what.” Rose confirms.

“Thanks guys…” Joy returns their smiles. All that fear in her gut has immediately dissipated. She feels calm, collected, and confident with her friends support.

  
The conversation is quickly turned back to Mega Robo Fighting Force, and Joy happily joins in this time. After all, her friends support her through thick or thin, she doesn't know why she so was worried.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed! Please don't be afraid to let me know what you thought!


	7. 10 Years Old. Finally.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joy finds out who she really is. Aka a boy.

Not being able to sleep is the worst. 

Joy's eyes are shut, her breathing relaxed, room dark, the conditions are perfect for sleeping! But no matter how hard she tries, her mind can't stop racing.

She's 10 years old, and she's still questioning her identity. She's sick and tired of it already! Can't she just know if she's a boy or a girl yet?

Like Rose said, she's considered using he/him pronouns. They feel better, when she uses them in her head, but they've taken a bit getting used to. She's stuck to using she/her, because they feel familiar, and she's worried about what her dad would say.

Dad's always loved the idea of having two daughters. Especially twins. Matching outfits and cute little dresses and bows. Over time, Joy's grown to hate those dresses. She's glad that dad doesn't comment of the shorts and t-shirts she's taken to wearing.

She's worried about what her dad would think if he found out his daughter was maybe his son. She's worried about what people will think in general.

For a few days last year, she asked Jade, Dave and Rose to address her by he/him pronouns. It was good. Really good. She felt better, more confident and a bit more secure in who she was amidst the confusion. But some people overheard, and those whispers…

She made them stop calling her using he/him pronouns. She had to. 

They weren't only bitching about Joy in horrid ways, but her friends too. She already knew people would talk about her, but the way they talked about her friends was unacceptable to her.

But there's still something inside her longing for those pronouns, that identity.

Deciding she probably isn't going to sleep, she gets up to get a glass of water. She pulls off the covers, slipping on her bunny slippers. She picks up her glasses from the nightstand, sliding them onto her face. The bunny slippers shuffle across the carpet, carrying Joy all the way downstairs and into the kitchen. It's dark inside the kitchen, but with a flick of the light switch, it's illuminated.

Dad strives to leave every surface of the kitchen benches absolutely spotless. Seriously, each one is like a mirror.

Joy stands on her tiptoes to grab a glass from the cupboard above the sink. They all sparkle, and Joy feels a little regretful in smearing her fingerprints over the glass. Oh well, she's using this one anyway.

The cold tap water pours into the glass. Joy stares at it, a little lost in thought. She startles when the cold water overflows onto her hand. The glass nearly slips out of her hands, but she manages to catch it in time.

She turns off the tap and shuffles over to the fridge. There's an ice dispenser, and she's really into that cool, crisp water at the moment. The ice tumbles into the water, splashing the water out of the cup and into the catchment below.

Joy stands in the middle of the kitchen, sipping on a glass of water.

It dawns to her then, when she's standing in the middle of the kitchen at one in the morning holding a glass of water, that she's a boy.

Finally.

She, no,  _ he _ smiles to himself. Finally he knows what he is. That allows him to take a big sigh of relief.

Of course, he's terrified about what people will say about him and his friends. But Joy finds he doesn't care as much as he did before.

Joy...didn't Rose say he should change his name? Joy pulls up a chair, perching himself on it while cradling the glass of water.

Joy is a nice name but now it feels a little uncomfortable upon his tongue. Joy furrows his brow in thought.

It's got to start with J. That's an unofficial rule his family tends to follow. His sister is Jane, his father is James, his poppop was Joseph. Joy mulls around all the ‘J’ names in his head. Jack, John, Joel, Jake, Jude.

John’s a nice name, albeit a little boring. Compared to the other names he can think of, he thinks it fits him the best. The others feel...off somehow, whereas John feels good.

 

Great. He's figured out what he is! Finally.

John smiles, setting down the now empty glass on the sink. Tiredness now suddenly overtaking him, he shuffles back in. Still smiling, John curls back under the covers, replacing his glasses on the nightstand.

He can't wait to let his friends know in the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry, but the old Joy can't come to the phone right now. Why? Because she's dead!


	8. 10 Years Old. Coming Out to Friends.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John comes out to Rose, Dave and Jade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nearly done with Johns trans arc, just two more chapters, not including this one. Well, its mentioned more of course, but this is the last of discovery and coming out arc.

“I have an announcement to make.” John announces to Rose, Dave and Jade over their lunch table in the cafeteria.

The three cease their eating and chatter to stare at John. 

“You're secretly an alien?” Dave jokes.

“You're secretly bigfoot?” Jade joins in.

“You're secretly the Loch Ness Monster?”

“You're secretly a ghost?”

“You're not so secretly an eldritch abomination from the deep depths of space?” Rose replies, disrupting the pattern Jade and Dave had going.

“Rose.” Dave turns to her, annoyed. “Way to ruin the thing with your weird creepy eldritch shit.”

Rose narrows her eyes at Dave. “I believe you were the one who originally ruined Joy's announcement, not me.”

“Yeah! It's a serious announcement. And I might be all of those things, but--” John jokes, all while trying to keep the conversation on track, but Jade interrupts with a yell.

“I knew it! See Dave, we were right. Joy  _ is _ some kind of supernatural being!”

“Told you, that shits more obvious than 9/11 being a hoax so the US could use it as an excuse to go to war against the Middle East.” Dave agrees nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders.

“9/11 was not a hoax Dave! You really shouldn't joke about that. The fact that you are suggests that-” Rose says, but Dave interrupts her with a:

“Jet fuel can't melt steel beams.”

“-you have neither maturity-” Rose continues, determined to get her point across.

“Jet fuel can't melt steel beams.” Dave replies, equally as determined to let everyone know that jet fuel can't melt steel beams.

“-nor common sense. It is incredibly disrespectful-”

“Jet fuel can't melt steel beams.”

“-to the victims of 9/11 and to the millions of innocent lives destroyed in the Middle East.”

“Jet fuel can't melt steel beams.”

“Oh grow up Dave.”

“Guys! Important announcement remember?” John huffs, more than a little annoyed his friends are ignoring him. He loves them, he does, but sometimes they carry on a little bit.

“Oh right.” Rose hums, 

“Sorry.” Jade apologises.

“Yes your highness.” Dave rolls his eyes.John pokes his tongue out at him.

“Anyway, last night I had an epiphany. I...I know who I am now. I know what I am.” John takes a deep breath. “I'm a boy. Like an actual boy, not a maybe boy.”

The table erupts into applause. Dave slings an arm around John's shoulders, putting him in a headlock in order to ruffle his hair. Jade beams for her friend, proud for him. Rose claps, a soft smile on her face. They’re all proud of him.

“My names John.”

“Nice to meet you John, my fist says hello.” Dave ruffles John's hair more, despite John struggling to get out of the headlock.

“Dave stop it! This is bullying!” Despite his words, John is laughing.

“Nice to meet you!” Jade chirps excitedly, rushing over to scoop Joy into a hug. She's always disregarded the rules of personal space, but her hugs are the best, and John doesn't care.

Rose puts her hand across the table for John to shake. “Nice to meet you John.”

“Nice to meet you too Rose.” John finally wiggles out of Dave's headlock and takes Rose's hand in his own.

“The pleasures all mine.” John mocks her formality, but he doesn't mean anything by it. Rose always acts older than she is.

“Just please...keep this to yourselves.” John adds. His friends all nod in agreement. “I don't know what Dad will say. Or how Jane would react. When I got you guys to refer to me as a boy last year, I heard so many people say terrible things. About me, and about you too. I'm not ready to come out fully yet. I trust you guys but…”

“It's okay John, we understand.” Rose reassures him.

“So call you a boy in private, but a girl in public?” Dave double checks.

“Y-Yeah. For now.” John confirms. 

“Don't worry John, you can count on us to keep your secret safe!” Jade says, moving back to her own seat. “We're your friends after all.”

Everyone turns back to their lunch. The atmosphere is still there, but everyone's hungry so food takes priority. Rose and Jade are eating the school lunch tray, while John and Dave are eating the sandwiches John's dad packed for them. Neither boy has mentioned the fact John's dad has done this everyday since they first met. Neither boy has mentioned the fact that Dave's dad still hasn't topped up the balance for either of his children.

The conversation continues as it had before. Except this time, everyone calls John by his name, and addresses him as he.

It hurts when they call him Joy in front of others, but he knows deep down it's for the best. This is the best he can do, the strongest he can be for now.


	9. 11 Years Old. Coming Out to Jane.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John comes out to his twin sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is just some sibling bonding! Very sweet. I'm trying to emphasize the sibling relationship as well as the group dynamic of the beta kids. Am I doing a good job?  
> The next chapter will be kinda long, so there will be a bit of a wait. It takes a bit of a break from the trans arc to focus on John and Dave together.  
> As always, enjoy! And don't forget to tell me what you thought in the comments!

Jane's room is very tidy in comparison to her twins. John’s room is pretty messy, with piles of clothes on the floor, an unmade bed and a whole bunch of posters plastered over the walls with no order to it whatsoever. The only neat thing in his room is the movie shelf, which has been painstakingly alphabetized.

Jane's room is very neat and orderly. Everything has its place. Like her twin, she has posters on the walls, but there is a structure to their layout. Several potted plants decorate the windowsill, a pastel blue patterned watering can situated below them. 

It's because of this comparison that John is rarely allowed into his sisters room. She believes that he'll tarnish her neat room. He believes that is absolute bullshit.

Usually, when the twins hang out, it's in John's room. This time, it's in Jane's room, a rare occasion indeed.

There's no real special occasion, sometimes they just like to switch it up. 

 

The twins are intensely focused on a game of snap. Dad banned them from any other type of card games, for fear they'd bet against each other. They've managed to slip past this with snap, telling Dad that they can't bet on it. This is a lie.

Their current game has a whole family sized bag of chips ahoy! at stake. They've figured out that they can get away with betting on their games as long as the evidence can be easily disposed of. Aka, eaten.

“Snap!” Jane shouts, slamming her hand against the medium sized pack of cards. This puts her at a significant advantage. Where before the twins were relatively even in card amounts,Jane's pile now towers above Joy's.

John isn't disheartened however, quickly snapping down a card once more. Card after card is snapped down. A rhythm is formed. John’s tongue is poking halfway out of his mouth. Jane’s glasses are falling halfway down her face, but she's too focused to fix them.

John's cards are running low. Unless a miracle happens, he's going to lose.

3...2...1… John puts down his last card. Jane has won.

 

“Yes!” She cries victoriously, grabbing the family back of chips ahoy!

“Drat. Best of three?” John offers.

“Nope. No takesey backsies.” Jane leans back on her bed, already eating her prize.

“At least give me one!” John makes grabby motions towards the cookies, but Jane bats his hands away.

“‘May contain traces of peanuts.’ Sorry Joy, you're allergic, you might die on us.”

And there it is. John isn't out to Jane or his dad yet. Rose is needling him to come out to someone, saying it'll be better for his mental health or whatever. Maybe he should. He's been thinking about coming out to Jane for a while. It's only fair. She's his twin sister, they've spent their lives together and shared everything (except rooms). Jane would be incredibly annoyed to be left out of the loop. She'd probably be supportive-she's always been very supportive anyway.

Ok. It's decided. John's going to come out to her. Quickly, before he changes his mind and regrets it.

“Jane...what would you say if you had a brother instead of a sister?”

“I'd be relieved because I wouldn't be stuck with you.” Jane replies. That certainly wasn't the answer John was expecting. “Nah, I'm joking. I wouldn't be relieved, you're my sister, I love you. Why?”

“I just…” John trails off. How does he put this? It's a bit hard to explain to someone who's never heard of the concept before. “You have a brother.”

“What? Did Dad meet someone new and not tell me?” Jane's face scrunches up in confusion.

“No. Your brother is me.” John admits. Jane pauses in her munching of chips ahoy!

“I don't understand, what do you mean by that? You're a girl, right?”

“No, I'm a boy. I'm your brother. I was Joy before, but now I'm John. I promise I'm not pranking you. Crockerbert Promise.” John looks his sister dead in the eyes, holding his pinky out. She takes it, squeezing it.

In the constant warzone of sibling prank wars, the Crockerbert Promise is something John and Jane do to let the other know they are absolutely serious. It's a sacred pact that never gets broken and is rarely uttered.

“Oh...well if it's a Crockerbert Promise.” Jane looks down at her and her brothers conjoined pinkies and his completely serious ideas. “I don't really understand how...but I promise to support you. John?” The last bit comes out as more a question, but John's relieved smile and more relaxed posture further cements to her that he is not joking.

“It's hard to explain. I just know I'm a boy. Please don't tell dad.” 

“I won't tell him.” Jane pats her brother on the arm. “I'll try to get it right. Please forgive me when I make mistakes. I thought you were my sister for all of my life. It's going to take some getting used to now that you're my brother!”

“That's fine. Thanks for understanding Jane, you're the best sister ever.” John smiles back at her, reaching a hand into the chips ahoy! packet. Jane lets him take one. One. 

“I know.” She replies smugly.

 

Rose was right, coming out to someone really lifted a weight off John's chest. He feels more confident in himself, and less guilty for lying to his sister. 

It feels good, taking another step closer being completely honest with himself. He slides down the wall and lies across the bed with his legs hanging down. He's annoyed he lost the bag of chips ahoy!, but glad that he finally plucked up the courage to come out to someone other than his friends. Maybe one day, he can tell his dad as well.


	10. 12 Years Old. A Casual Sleepover.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave eat Ice-cream at the park, get harassed by a 50 year old woman, then leave for a Scooby Doo marathon and a sleepover at John's house.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so my friend informed me that americans dont have frosty fruits after i finished the park scene and i couldnt be bothered to fix it. Its a fruit flavoured iceblock from Australia and it is lit af  
> Honestly all these companies should pay me for product placement tbh.
> 
> And I hope you enjoy! Your comments and reviews are welcome! Please tell me what you think.

For a Friday afternoon, the park near John's house is very quiet. There's a few little kids playing under the watchful eye of their parents, but that's about it.

John's relieved about that. That allows him and Dave to hang out relatively uninterrupted, and eat their ice-cream in peace. 

Dad, in a generous mood, gave John and Dave ten bucks to buy ice-cream and go hang out in the park down the street. How nice of him. It was probably the fact that he wanted them out of the house. Three preteens are hard to handle on your own, and he might as well get rid of two of them while he had the chance.

“Sweet, the swings are free.” Dave says, making his way towards the swingset. His hands are clutching a classic Cornetto, while John trails behind him licking a Frosty Fruit. Dave slumps down on the bigger swing, leaving John with the baby swing. Slightly insulted, and knowing he definitely wouldn't fit, John leans against the pole of the swing.

“Why do you have to hog the swing?” John complains.

“Because first in best dressed John. I got here first, therefore this is  _ my _ swing.”

“ _ Your _ swing? What, did you buy it? Does it have your name on it?” 

“Yes actually, it does. Here it is, see?” Dave gets up briefly and shows John the writing on the seat.

“That says PlayCorp.” John replies skeptically.

“That's my nickname.” Dave says, without flinching whatsoever.

“No it's not! Your nickname is Farto Stinkman.” John looks triumphant in his comeback. Nevermind the fact that it's terrible.

“Well your nickname is Geeky Nerdboy!” Dave fires back.

“Says you, Mr The-90s-were-cool.” 

“Says the person with untied shoelaces.” Dave smirks.

“Oh drat.” John looks down to find his shoelaces are indeed untied. “Hold this for a second please.” John hands Dave his half eaten Frosty Fruit and crouches down to tie his shoe.

Left under right. Pull. Make the bunny ears and twist them under. Double knot them. There, done.

John stands up to take back his Frosty Fruit only to find Dave's taken a big bite out of it.

“Hey!” John shrieks in indignation. Dave has the audacity to lick his lips and shrug.

“That's good shit.”

“That's my ice block!” 

“It was good.”

“Yeah but it was my ice block!” 

“Quit complaining John, here, I'll let you have some of mine.” Dave holds out his Cornetto.

“That has peanuts, I can't eat it or I'll die!!!” John wails. It's a little over dramatic, but Dave ate his ice-cream so it's justified.

Dave at least has the decency to look sheepish. Begrudgingly, John accepts this. “You're an asshole.”

“You love me.” Dave smirks cockily.

“Oh sure.” John rolls his eyes. “Like I love packet mix Betty Crocker.” 

“But you hate Betty Crocker!”

“Exactly.”

“Oh.” Dave deadpans. He solemnly licks his Cornetto. John pokes his tongue out at him, continuing on with the remainder of his Frosty Fruit.

 

Around them, the park is filled with laughter. Kids shriek and play amongst themselves. One child dashes over to the baby swing next to Dave and begins swinging on it. His friends follow him, interrupting John and Dave's ice-cream swing time.

Dave, irritated, gets off his swing and heads to another section of the playground. John of course, follows.

The section of the playground they move to is relatively deserted. Thats strange, because it holds the best attraction--the giant net swing. Dave immediately dives onto it, patting the spot next to him for John to join him.  John takes him up on that offer, laying down beside him. The two stare up at the sky, the net swing swaying slightly under their weight. Their ice-creams are nearly finished. The summer sun is hot and blazing and beautiful.

“I'm sorry for eating your ice block.” Dave apologizes.

“Sorry doesn't mean shit.” John grumbles, purposely turning his face away from Dave. He eats the remainder of it in a huff.

Dave, feeling guilty, looks between his Cornetto and the sulking back of John. He shoves the rest of the Cornetto into his mouth, chewing it so quickly he's in danger of choking. Making sure no one sees, he shifts into a crow and lands on John's side.

John looks at him through the slits of his eyes. “What do you want?” 

Dave just hops into John's arms, pressing against his chest. John begrudgingly begins to pat his feathers, taking care to be gentle.

Dave's crow form is albino, like all his forms, with stark white feathers and beady red eyes. He huddles against John's chest, eyes closed and chest quietly rising and falling. In this position, only John can really see him.

Of all the animals to shift into, Dave's favourite is a crow. John doesn't know why, and Dave never says. When it's just the two of them, Dave sometimes shifts into his crow form and huddles up to John. John enjoys it, as the feeling of a tiny body pressed against his is oddly soothing. He only assumes Dave enjoys it as well. John can tell this is Dave's way of making amends, as he never usually shifts in public.

John rubs just below Dave's beak-a spot John knows he adores-as a way to show Dave that he is forgiven. Partially.

 

Of course, since John and Dave are taking up the best piece of play equipment in the park, they soon gain onlookers.

Five pairs of eyes watch John as the net swing lazily sways back and forth. The gazes range from curious to annoyed to downright malicious. 

“You've been on that swing for ten minutes.” Finally, one of them speaks up. His voice is loud, squeaky and very annoying.

“Well I'm having a good time on it.” John replies, ignoring the kids very obvious demands for the swing.

“Yeah well you've had a long enough time on it, it's our turn now, missy.” The boy snaps, the last word like venom on his tongue. It affects John just the same.

John opens his mouth to tell the kids to leave them alone but Dave beats him to it. Standing tall on John's body, wings spread he utters two words. “Fuck off.”

The kids immediate reaction is to scream and run. In crow form, Dave's voice comes out in garbled caws. Even to John, it's a little scary.

“Dave.” John says, reaching out to Dave to pat his head. “Good idea. Now they'll leave us alone.”

“No. Bad idea. Look, guess who's telling their mommy?” Dave points with a wing. The little boy is sobbing to a very angry looking middle aged woman. A very angry woman with all her anger directed at them. A fury in her eyes, she begins marching over to their swing. “Fuck, we gotta go.”

John sits up with a start, scooping Dave into his arms. John's glad they didn't bring anything, so there's nothing to tie them down.

“You there, little girl! Stop right there!” The lady yells, coming to a halt behind John's retreating back. John winces at the mention of ‘little girl’. Begrudgingly, Joy turns to face the woman. Dave presses against his chest, chest rising and falling way too fast.

“You, girl, and your  _ shifter _ friend better leave my poor Timothy alone!” The tone of voice when she says ‘shifter’ makes John uneasy and nervous. He can only imagine how Dave feels. “All he wanted was to play on the swing! You were hogging it for far too long, you weren't even using it properly. It was his turn, and you have the indecency, to tell him to ‘F off!’’

“Well your kid is a spoi-” Dave starts, but John shoves a hand over his mouth, silencing him. John knows what Dave was about to say, and, although true, would only make things worse.

“We're sorry ma'am. We did spend too long on that swing. And my friend apologizes for swearing at your son.” Despite John's words, Dave remains silent, glaring at the woman. 

“It's good that you'll owe up to your actions.” The lady sniffs. “I'd better not hear any more about you from my son. Or I'll tell your parents.”

Her heroic work of bullying children seemingly done, she turns on her heel and walks back to her gaggle of friends. From the net swing, her son flips them the bird.

John releases Dave from the tight hug he's got him in. Dave immediately hops on his shoulder, nudging John's glasses.“Come on.” John mumbles. “Let's go home.”

The two begin heading back towards John's house. The roses that line the path from the entrance to the park are in bloom. They smell gorgeous, and they add splashes of colour to the green of the park. The sight of a boy walking through the rose-lined path of the park with a giant albino crow on his shoulder must be pretty strange to onlookers. Dave's used to the stares.

“Well she was an asshole.” Dave says after they're well away from earshot. “Picking on twelve year olds like that. Bet she feels like the fucking man for saving little Timmy there.” 

“Yeah.” John lets out a little half laugh. He's still shaken up from that lady. The misgendering, hatred of shifters and the pure parental fury of the woman has shaken John to the core.

“Like seriously, is her life that pathetic? Is she that unfulfilled that she feels she needs to yell at actual children for a minor inconvenience? She should get back into her SUV, and take her orange slices for soccer practice, and leave us the fuck alone!” Dave, rambling in the voice of a crow, is weird and a little strange to John's ears. “And her kid was a spoilt brat! Did you see him flip us the bird?”

“You should flip back at him.” At John's joke, Dave full on glares at him. He jumps off John's shoulder and by the time his feet hit the ground, he's human.

“Real funny Egbert.” Dave says dryly. He folds his arms and walks a little ahead of John.

“I'm hilarious I know.” John picks up the pace to catch up to his friend.

The two head out of the park, laughing like drunken idiots. Except they're twelve and the only thing they're drunk on is friendship.

 

A little while later, John and Dave arrive back at John's house. Jane's lying on the couch, watching TV. Judging from the smell coming from the kitchen, Dad's in there cooking dinner.

“You're back.” Jane looks up at the two newcomers. “How was the park?”

“Dave told a kid to fuck off and his mum came up and yelled at us.” John replies, slumping onto the couch next to his sister. “How was staying home by yourself?”

“I had a pretty good time. I just watched TV. Dad's nearly finished dinner, we're eating it at the coffee table.”

“What's for dinner?” Dave joins the twins on the couch.

“Chicken Pho.” Jane replies. “Dad's only letting us eat at the TV because Dave's sleeping over.”

“Fine with me.” Dave shrugs. “Your dad's cooking is the best no matter where it's eaten.”

“I'm glad you feel that way Dave.” Emerging from the kitchen, Dad carries out four steaming bowls of soup on a tray. John immediately jumps up to help him, grabbing two bowls and setting them down in front of Dave and Jane. As Dad sits, he hands John a bowl. “Thank you Joy, you're a lifesaver. Tuck in everybody!” 

Dave and Jane both turn to stare at John, which he pointedly ignores in favour of his bowl of Chicken Pho. They've both been wanting and pestering him to come out to Dad. Dave's backed off a little after John told him to stop, but Jane's been relentless. John's just glad she hasn't outed him yet. 

John's a little frustrated, with the combination of Dad not knowing, his sister needling him about it and the encounter with the soccer mom and all. At least he has the amusing view of Dave attempting to use chopsticks. Dave claims he can use them pretty well at home with instant noodles, but that's completely different.

As always, Dad's cooking is delicious. The noodles are perfectly cooked, and the chicken is tender. Hints of cinnamon, lemongrass, ginger and chilli compliment the dish. Shallots and garlic float in the watery broth. John can't really taste the soy sauce or fish sauce, but he knows it's there because Dad always puts it in.

Pretty soon, John's bowl is empty. Jane and Dave's bowls echo this, while Dad has taken it slow, with his bowl only half empty.

“So what are you two getting up to tonight?” Dad asks, after carefully swallowing a mouthful of noodles.

“We're having a Scooby Doo marathon!” John says excitedly. “Dave brought all the classics!”

“Are you going to finish your marathon this time?” Jane butts in. John pokes his tongue out at her.

“We will too! Just you wait and see!” 

“Sure.” Jane rolls her eyes.

By now, Dad has finished his bowl. In a hurry to get the marathon started, John begins clearing the table, stacking empty bowls and collecting chopsticks and spoons. Jane excuses herself from the table, probably to talk to her friends online. Dave, knowing John's house better than his own by now, grabs blankets out from the linen closet and lays them out on the couch.

“Alright, have fun you two.” Dad gets up once John reenters the room. A sort of exchange happens, where father leaves the room and son enters. John plops down onto the couch, snuggling under the blankets.

 

“Alright, so what ones did you bring?” John asks.

“Well.” Dave starts, pulling a bunch of DVD cases from his school bag, which he'd left there before going to the park for ice cream. “Scooby Doo and the Cyber Chase. A classic. Scooby Doo and the Witch's Ghost. Amazing, those Hex Girls are really something. Scooby Doo Zombie Island. Also a classic. Scooby Doo in Where's My Mummy. What a plot twist in the end! Am I right or am I right? Scooby Doo and the Alien Invaders. That ones a little weird, but so are all of them.”

“One, where did you get these and two, so it's just the classics?”

“Yeah, just the best ones. And I got them from the DVD shelf at home.”

Dave puts in the first disk and the movie marathon begins. 

Scooby Doo is weird, as a rule. Good-weird, but still weird. But it's always good for a laugh and a sleepover marathon. The logic is always strange, and most of the time it's pretty obvious who the person running around in a monster mask is. 

They start with Cyber Chase. Like the shitty twelve year olds they are, they make fun of it the whole way through. Cries of ‘baaaaaaatteerr up!’ ring out across the house whenever baseball is even mentioned. By the end of the movie, there's loud music pumping from Jane's room in an effort to drown them out.

Then they watch Witch's Ghost. Curiously enough, Jane appears while the Hex Girls appear on screen. Dad brings out some ice-cream for desert, and joins them for a little bit. After the bowls have been packed away, Jane joins them for the rest of the movie.

She leaves during Zombie Island because the boys are back to making fun of it. She likes Scooby Doo, but watching it with her brother and his best friend is a no go.

Next, they watch Where's My Mummy. When Velma ‘dies’, Dave cries, much to John's amusement. Dave pretends to be unemotional most of the time, but John knows Dave's the most sensitive of all his friends. After laughing at him, John brings out some popcorn for them to share.

Finally, they watch Alien Invaders. That ones the weirdest, but still good. The ending is good though. By the time they've finished the movies, it's midnight. Jane was wrong, they made it through the entire thing. They don't usually, so this is a first.

As the credits roll, John stands to stretch, back cracking quite loudly. “Come on Dave, let's go up to bed.”

Dave gives him a  _ look _ . He's obviously tired, hair unkempt and bags under his eyes. John just smiles back, equally as tired. Wordlessly, the two make their way upstairs and into John's bedroom. The stairs creak and groan a little under their weight, but John's too tired to worry about waking the house up.

 

While they were at the park, or some time during the Scooby Doo marathon, Dad set up Dave's bed. Dave usually sleeps on the floor, on top of an air mattress. Depending on the season, he's either bundled up in blankets and pillows or just has a thin sheet covering him. It's summer, so Dave has the latter set up.

“Hey um, I'm just going to get changed into my pyjamas in the bathroom real quick.” Dave says in a rush, quickly dashing out of the room. John doesn't mind, he needs to get changed into his own pyjamas.

Since it's summer, his current pyjamas are just an oversized old t-shirt of Dad's and some polka dot patterned shorts. They're comfortable, what can he say?

John sets his glasses down on the bedside table and snuggles into his bed. It's still lined with stuffed toys. Dave's teased him about it, but John doesn't care. He grabs an octopus plushie (a collaborative gift from Rose and Jade) and hugs it to his chest.

His room is pretty cool, at least that's what he thinks. The walls are covered in posters, although John doesn't have them absolutely covered like Jade’s brother Jake. John has a pretty extensive movie collection that's grown over the years, mostly thanks to his friends and Dad. The set of drawers to the other side of the door is overflowing with clothes. Hidden away in the underwear draw is John's binder. Rose managed to get one for him, and it's been amazing. His sister and friends have made sure he follows the guidelines, which is embarrassing to say the least. It hurts, but it's helped flatten the boobs that have been growing since he started puberty. He hasn't got his period yet, thank God, but John knows it's only a matter of time. John needs to keep it hidden from Dad, which is harder than you'd expect.

Dave comes back in, a little out of breath, and flicks off John's light switch. Now, the room is only illuminated by John's bedside lamp. Dave places his sunglasses on the nightstand next to John's glasses and snuggles into his bed.

After a few minutes of silence, Dave grumbles: “Turn that light off will you?”

John complies, plunging the room into utter darkness.

“Goodnight Dave!” 

“What, you're going to sleep now?” Dave chides. “Can't we like, stay up and talk for a bit?”

“Sure! What do you want to talk about?” John chirps, turning towards Dave in the dark.

“I dunno. What about school and stuff?” Dave racks his brain for ideas with things to talk about.

“Being in Seventh Grade is kind of scary. Like, we're growing up so fast! Soon we’ll both be super old and drinking prune juice in the nursing home together.” 

“Hold up…” Dave pauses, a little bit of awe in his voice. “You think we'll still be best friends in like, 80 years?”

“Of course!” John answers in an instant. “You're my number one best friend. Like, we'll probably grow old together or something.”

“We'll bring terror to the nursing home and all prune juice alike.” Dave laughs. “I'd probably like, piss or shit myself and the nurse will have to come. Then you'll laugh so hard your teeth will fall out.”

“What! Why my teeth?”

“I mean, look at them.”

John lets out a gasp of indignation and aims a kick at Dave. “Hey!”

“Ow! What was that for?” Dave protests.

“You know what that was for!”

“Well now future me doesn't feel like sharing his prune juice with you.” Dave sulks. John can't see him in the dark, but he's willing to bet that Dave has his arms folded in a huff.

“That's fine. Future me doesn't want to share the massive stash of chocolate and lollies under his bed.”

“Yeah but you'll probably have to share them with all your grandkids anyway.”

“Grandkids! How many are we talking here because I'm twelve, I'm not even thinking about kids yet.”

“Well you might not want kids or grandkids, but I will have a whole bunch. From now to the time I'm 90, I'll be jizzing in so many girls my dna will be everywhere and I'll have so many grandkids it'll be scary.”

“Ew ew ew ew ew ew!” John shrieks. “That's disgusting! No one wants that. Don't word it like  _ that _ !”

“Word it like what?”

“You know what!”

“No I don't.”

“Yes you do! Wording it like you're going to jizz-you know what? Nevermind.” John really should be used to Dave saying shit like this. As he's gotten older, he's begun to talk about his dick and women a lot more. It's a little awkward, but pretty funny whenever Rose says he's overcompensating for something. “Just stop talking about your dick.”

“I'm sorry John, you're going to have to hear about my dick for the rest of your life.”

“I think Rose was right-you  _ are _ overcompensating for something.” John remarks. That shuts him up. Judging solely from his breathing, he's sulking pretty hard. “Oh no Dave, don't cry.”

“I'm not crying!” Dave protests. “Just annoyed that Rose has spread such untruths.”

“An inconvenient truth.”

“An inconvenient  _ un _ truth.” Dave ‘corrects’.

“Sure Dave.” John yawns, quiet loudly.

“Jeez, a little tired there Egbert?” Dave mocks, masking his own inconvenient yawn.

“Shut up.” John's voice is heavy with tiredness. “I'm not tired.”

“Well neither am I.” Dave says, unintentionally punctuating his sentence with a yawn. Scooby Doo marathons really drain it out of you. 

The two lie there in silence for a little while, both staring up at the ceiling.

“We’d better go to bed.” John says solemnly, as if getting a good night's sleep is a bad thing.

“Probably, yeah.”

“Goodnight Dave.” John closes his eyes and drifts off into dreamland.

“Goodnight John.” Dave copies him, ever determined to follow his best friend to the ends of the earth.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also I want to include the kids cultures without it seeming like 'and then we ate onigiri underneath the kotatsu (an if you dont know what that is gtfo!!!)'. And if it seems like that please tell me.  
> So like Dad cooks Vietnamese food and both John and Jane can speak Vietnamese.


	11. 12 Years Old. Coming Out to Dad.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John comes out to his dad.

“Dad. I have something I need to tell you.” John announces. Today's the day. He's finally going to come out to his Dad.

Dad is in the current process of making dinner. He's stirring a pot of something, making sure it doesn't burn or boil over, but he turns as much attention as he can to his child. He has a feeling he knows what this is about. “What is it Joy? You know you can tell me anything.”

John takes a deep breath, steadying himself. He feels like his world is swaying under him and the only way to calm it all is to say the thing that's trying to burst out of his chest. “I'm a boy. Not a girl.”

Ah. So it is what Dad thought. He's always tried not to eavesdrop on his children, but he can't help but listen to their conversations. He's heard them call Joy John. He's never said anything about it because he wants Joy to feel safe and comfortable enough to tell him herself. Although now he supposes he can finally call Joy by the proper pronouns. Joy's looking at him with large, worried blue eyes. They threaten to overspill with tears at any moment.

Dad crouches down, bringing him in for a hug. “That's okay, I accept you, I love you.”

Joy's eyes overflow with tears, and he begins to cry. Although, much to Dad's relief, they're tears of happiness and not sadness.

“So you're a boy, right?” Dad asks. “Can you tell me what you'd prefer to be called?”

“My names John.” John says, voice shaky and still a little nervous. “I prefer he/him pronouns.”

“I'm so proud of you my son.” Dad smiles, and John cries harder. “I have a son and a daughter.”

John comes back in for another hug, crying all the while. Dad holds back a few tears himself. He's proud of his son for mustering up the courage to tell him.

“Now John. We need to have a serious talk about this.”

“Like what?” All of John's worry crashes back in. Does Dad not believe him? Or was he lying and misses having two daughters? Is he going to send John to one of those gay camps?

“Calm down John, it won't be a bad talk. I just want to talk with you about hormones and school, and other things.” Dad laughs at his son, no ill intent in his voice.

“Oh.” John feels a little dumb for thinking all of those things. Now he doesn't know why he was worried about Dad hating him when Dad's smiling down at him so warmly.

“Have you thought about taking testosterone?”

John has. He did some research into it ages ago, around a year or so ago when he first came out to Jane. It seemed like a dream come true at first. And then he saw the price. Dad was by no means poor, but paying for monthly installments of testosterone for him would be way too much of a burden. Especially as a single parent with two growing teens and their friends to look after. The only reason why he even has a binder is because Rose got one for him.

“...I have but...no. It's not that bad. I know I'm a boy, I don't need pills to confirm anything.” John declines it. He knows Dad would hate the real reason, so he doesn't say.

“What about a binder?”

“I...already have one. Rose gave it to me.” John confesses.

“Oh how nice of her! She's a very nice girl that one.” Dad smiles. John tries not to laugh at the fact he called Rose a nice girl. Smart, cunning, nosey and a little snobbish, yes. Nice? Not particularly. “And let me know if you need a new one. Remember to be safe with it because it can seriously hurt you John.”

“Daaaad, it's fine!” John protests. “Everyone else is always on my case about it anyway!”

“Because we love you, and want you to be safe.”

John turns away, wiping tears from his eyes. A wide, stupid smile is on his face.

“Finally, what do you want to do about school?” Dad asks.

“What do you mean?” John frowns, confusion in his features.

“I mean should I register you in the school under John and get all that paperwork sorted, or are you not ready for that yet?”

“Oh I...haven't thought about that.” John grimaces. “I don't know. On one hand, it would be great to be out! It would be really nice. But on the other hand...I'm scared of what people will say. Maybe...maybe once I start junior high.”

“Are you sure sweetheart?” Dad double checks. 

John pauses, then nods. “Yeah, I'm sure. It'll be easier that way anyway.”

“If you're sure sweetheart.” Dad ruffles John's hair affectionately. “Now, do you want to help me with dinner?”

“Okay!” John nods. He drags a chair over to the stove, climbing atop it in order to watch over the bubbling pot. He wipes happy tears from his eyes and smiles softly to himself. The pot he's stirring smells delicious. Dad's humming to himself while chopping vegetables. Jane is upstairs, no doubt she was listening at the stairs and is relieved for her twin brother. Everything is as it should be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, enjoy! Please tell me what you thought in the comments below!


	12. 12/13 Years Old. Happy Birthday Dave!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave never celebrates his birthday, so John, Jade and Rose are determined to change that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know! I'm late for Dave's actual birthday, sue me haha. The next two chapters are gonna be fillerish before a really long one that sows the seeds of johndave and jaderose.  
> As always, enjoy!

It's the 3rd of December, better known as Dave Strider's birthday. Or Dirk Strider’s birthday. Depends on who you ask.

He's turning thirteen, he's a teenager now! That's a big occasion. However, the Strider twins have never exactly celebrated their birthday. John, Rose and Jade plan to change this. For Dave at least.

They've each brought presents for Dave, and John included a cake that Dad made. It's apple cinnamon, Dave's favourite.

“You're definitely sure he's here today?” Rose double checks with John. 

John's putting the finishing touches on their usual table in the cafeteria. It looks pretty festive, with the cake smack bang in the middle on a red table cloth, and some snacks and balloons. It draws attention from others in the cafeteria, but they've got teacher permission for this.

“Yeah. He texted me all sulky this morning because we all showed up late to prepare for this. Not that he knows about this, of course. And besides, I had last class with him. He's just late because he got in trouble with the teacher.” John explains.

“On his birthday?” Jade exclaims. “Teachers are so rude.”

“He told the teacher to go fuck himself when he was asked to do work.” John shrugs. “Then he shouted ‘fuck the system!’ or something like that. It was kinda funny, but the teacher wasn't amused.”

“Oh. I suppose that's a little justified.”

“Guys, he's coming! Quick, like we planned!” Rose interrupts. The three nod to each other, setting off to do what they'd planned beforehand.

John dashes off to where Dave's entering the cafeteria, ignoring the curious stares. He skids to a halt in front of Dave, shoving his palms in front of Dave's eyes.

“Guess who?”

“Egbert, that shit doesn't work when you run directly in front of the person you're trying to scare.” Dave attempts to take John's hands off his eyes, very unsuccessfully. John shuffles around so he's behind Dave, and can easily lead him to the table without Dave seeing his semi-surprise birthday party.

John leads Dave back to their table, ignoring, yet noting, the glare on his back from Dirk. Dirk seems very pissed, ready to get up from his seat and march over there, so John picks up the pace a little bit. Him and Dirk aren't exactly friends.

“Can I at least know where you're taking me?” Dave asks, tone cool, but slightly annoyed.

“Nope!” John replies, popping the ‘p’.

“Fair enough.” Dave sighs. Today hasn't been his day. It's the 13th anniversary of his mother's death, and his dad is very upset about it.

John and Dave arrive in front of the table. John gently guides Dave to sit down, in front of his cake. He raises his hands from Dave's eyes, allowing his sight to return.

 

“Surprise!” Rose and Jade shout in unison.

“Happy 13th birthday!” Jade pops a popper over Dave's head, covering his shocked face in confetti.

“You're finally a teen!” Rose smirks. “Time for crushing responsibilities!”

“Guys I...I don't know what to say…This is all...for me?” Dave mumbles.

“Yeah! Dad made the cake especially for you! Wait until you see your presents!” John plops down beside him, holding two neatly wrapped boxes he seemingly procured from nowhere.

“Presents…?” Dave turns to look at John, a vacant look on his face.

“Yeah!” John shoves the two neatly wrapped boxes into Dave's hands. “Happy birthday Dave!”

Dave, with wide eyes and shaky hands begins to unwrap the present. John really, really hopes he likes it. He saved up for aaaages to get this.

Dave finally unwraps the first, smaller box, holding it up with a look of awe on his face. “Wha...John…”

“I thought it was time to replace your old shades. I get you think they're ironic or whatever, and it's probably a family tradition since both your Dad and brother wear them, but they look dumb. So I got you some new ones! Believe it or not, they're actually Ben Stillers!” John explains, beaming as Dave removes them from their packaging and slides them on his face, replacing his old pair.

“Holy shit John…” Dave mumbles.

“You still haven't opened the other one from me!” John pokes him. “That ones even better!”

Dave bites his lip, but begins opening John's other present. It's a camera. A really good SLR camera. 

“I got you this because whenever we watch a movie together, you always remark on the cinematography. And you've always shown a lot of interest in photography. So I wanted you to make some of your own.

“John...holy shit I can’t accept this. This must've cost a fortune!”

“Don't worry about it! I've been saving up my pocket money and earning extra from Dad for little jobs.” John reassures his worried friend.

Dave's eyes widen and he blinks back tears. In one swift motion, he dives into John's chest, wrapping his arms around John's middle. “...Thank you.”

“You haven't even seen our presents yet!” Jade interrupts. 

Dave pokes his head out from John's chest. “You bought me presents too?”

“Not as elaborate or expensive as John's, but yes, we did. Ours may look less than his, but we still put as much thought and effort into them.” Rose answers, handing Dave a rectangle wrapped in neat purple paper. “This one's mine.”

Dave begins opening it, more confident this time. Inside is a hideously knitted sweater, which can only be described as a polka dot pattern-where the polka dots are replaced with penises. Immediately, he slips it on, swearing in delight.

“Don't I look dashing?”

“I'm pretty sure that violates the school dress code.” Jade frowns, wrinkling up her nose in distaste. “As well as a million fashion rules.”

“You look like a dickhead.” John replies truthfully.

“You look very dashing.” Rose replies untruthfully.

“Why thank you Rose.” Dave replies to Rose, ignoring the other two answers. “Now what's the book about?”

“The different creatures of the animalia kingdom for the specific education of shifter individuals. It's goal is to educate shifters on the different animal forms they can inhabit, as well as help them overcome the stigma against their kind.” Rose says, a haughty air of importance in her words.

“What.” Dave replies dumbly.

Rose sighs. “An animal picture book.”

“No I mean what as in what, why do you think I need this? I shift all the time, years of training from my father mean I'm pretty much the bomb at that shit. I don't give a flying fuck about the animals I can shift into, nor do I give a flying fuck about the stigma shifters face. I already know that shit.” Dave is incredibly tense, his voice snappy and curt. He seems half ready to cry and half ready to snap Rose's neck.

Rose opens her mouth to voice her concerns on Dave's self hatred as well as his father and the ‘training’ Dave undergoes, but the looks Jade and John shoot her stop her in her tracks. Dave is very...sensitive...to the topic. “Consider it an ironic present. Why would someone so good at shifting need a book like this?”

Dave visibly relaxes. Whenever shifting is mentioned, he gets super defensive. Even John, who he trusts most out of anyone on the planet, still has trouble getting Dave to open up. He's the only one of the three of them that's seen Dave's true form, and even then it wasn't Dave's intention to show him.

“My turn!” Jade shoves a small, slightly squashed green parcel into Dave's hands. It's smaller than the others, but Dave still takes care in unwrapping it. It's three packets of seeds, as well as a block of Dave's favourite chocolate. The seeds are for daisies, snapdragons and carnations.

“It's for your own windowsill garden! I have one and it's so nice! It's really relaxing, and super cool to have stuff that I gave life to just sitting there, on my windowsill.” Jade beams, explaining her present to Dave.

“It's nice, thank you.” Dave lets out a small smile. “Thank you. All of you.” In one very out of character moment, Dave sweeps John, Jade and Rose up in a hug. Rose is a little startled, she wasn't expecting that after Dave's reaction to her present. Jade and John however, accept the hug, giving it back x10.

“Thank you all so much for doing this for me…” Dave breaks away from the hug. 

“Anything for my best friends birthday!” John grins. “Now let's have some cake!”


	13. 12 Years Old. First Period.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John gets his period.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoy it! Please leave comments and reviews,,,,my crops are dying,,,,

Do you ever wake up and get the feeling that your life is about to change forever? Like you wake up and something's definitely changed and there's nothing you can do?

That's the feeling John Egbert feels when he goes to take his morning pee, and there's blood on his underwear.

He's got his period. He knew it would happen eventually, but...so soon?

He feels a little woozy and his stomach hurts. There's a weird feeling in his chest and he feels sick. 

In sex ed at school they learnt about periods. About how they're known as the “path to womanhood” or whatever. John knowns only girls get periods. The thought makes him sick.

At times like this, there's only one thing he can really do. 

 

“Daaaaaaad!” John yells across the house. “Can you come here?”

“John don't yell at me from across the house!” Comes the distant reply.

“Dad  _ please _ come here!” John urges.

Sensing the urgency in his son's voice, Dad rushes to the bathroom. He stops in front of the door, trying the handle.  It's locked, obviously.

“Can I come in?” Dad asks.

John pulls his shorts up, not before discarding his bloody underwear. He shuffles over to the door and unlocks it to let his Dad in.

“John, what's wrong honey?” Dad asks, looking around frantically before his eyes rest on the discarded bloodied underwear. “Oh.”

“I...I...I got my first period.” John stammers out, on the verge of tears.

Dad leans down to pick up the discarded underwear. He clutches it in his hands, holding onto it for later. To soak it in the laundry sink.

“How about you have a shower and get yourself cleaned up. I'll get you fresh, comfy clothes and some sanitary items. You're staying home from school today.” Dad comforts his son by ruffling his hair. 

“Alright, thanks Dad.” John smiles.

Dad leaves, with full intentions of gathering everything his son needs, and getting his daughter ready for school. Being a single parent is hard.

 

John strips, dumping his clothes on a pile on the floor. He places his phone on the bathroom sink bench, but not before texting something brief to Dave.

_ ‘i’m feeling pretty sick so i’m having the day off school. sorry’ _

John adjusts the shower to his liking, not too hot, not too cold, just right. Like Goldilocks. He has to wait a few minutes before the shower is the right temperature, like all showers, before he can hop in.

The warm water washes over him. It all feels so unreal. Like he's floating outside of his own body, watching from the astral plane. He's known this would happen eventually, but now? It's so unreal.

He's sitting on the tiled floor, watching the water gush down the drain. There's a faint line of blood dribbling down the drain as well. Jesus Christ his guts are a mess. His stomach feels weird and gross and he kind of wants to curl up into a ball and cry.

Unfortunately for him, this is reality and he has to deal with it. 

“John sweetheart, I'm coming in.” Dad opens the door, coming in to deposit fresh clothes, underwear and a pad. “You alright?”

“Yeah. I think I'll be okay.” John manages a weak smile.

“Good. Your sister is giving me hell because she has to go to school and you get to stay home.” Dad sighs, rubbing his eyes and staring blankly at his reflection in the mirror.

“Tell her I said ‘suck shit’.”

“I'm not doing that.” Dad sighs even harder.

“Well we're twins, so she'll find out somehow.” John shrugs.

“Well okay then.” Dad moves to leave the room, scooping up John's dirty clothes. “I'll be going now. Yell for me if you need anything. I love you!”

“Love you too.”

The bathroom door closes with a quiet ‘click’. John immerses himself in the shower, shoving his face in the warm droplets for several minutes. It's nice, but he has to get up. Slowly, he forces himself to stand up. Then, in a rush, John turns off the water and flings open the shower cubicle door.

Wrapping himself in a towel, John walks over to his phone and the fresh clothes Dad left for him. First, he checks his phone. There's a text from Jade ( _ ‘are you ok john??? dave said you were sick!!!’ _ ) and Rose ( _ ‘Are you alright John? Dave said you were feeling under the weather.’ _ ) and approximately six texts from Dave.

_ ‘holy shit egbert dont die on me’ _

_ ‘we have that science experiment and youre my lab partner please dont leave me with rose and jade’ _

_ ‘seriously bro what is it your not faking it are you’ _

_ ‘is it cancer are you dying’  _

_ ‘is it some rare lame nerd disease that only lame nerds get’ _

_ ‘fuck bro dont die on me’ _

John quickly fires off replies to Jade ( _ ‘haha yeah, don't worry i'll be fine _ !’) and Rose ( _ ‘yeah but i'm fine don't worry about it!’ _ ) before getting started on Dave's long tirade.

_ ‘i'm fine dave don't worry i'm not going to die’ _

_ ‘i just got my first period and dad's letting me stay home’ _

The reply is instantaneous. John reads it while sliding his clothes on. Multitasking for the win!

_ ‘oh shit’ _

_ ‘like the bleeding thing’ _

_ ‘thats rough buddy i hope youre ok’ _

John sends a quick reply ( _ ‘thanks dave! i think i'll be alright :B’ _ ) before opening the pad packet and wondering what to do with it. It's placed in the underwear, right?

Well, it's uncomfortable as all hell, but John thinks it's right where it is. Even though it digs in a bit and is a bit of a unusual and weird sensation down there.

All dressed, clean and less miserable, John makes his way downstairs, phone in hand. It buzzes, alerting him to another text from Dave.

_ ‘want me to get something for you ive heard chocolates good for that’ _

_ ‘that’s...really nice of you dave thank you’ _ John replies, smiling to himself as he settles on the couch.

_ ‘cool’ _

_ ‘ill get you a packet of gushers too if youd like’ _

John finds it nearly impossible to keep the smile off his face.  _ ‘thanks dave you're a saint’. _

_ ‘i know’  _ comes the reply.

John settles into the couch, smirking at Jane as she passes, off to go to school. She flips him the bird under her pretty bluebird binder.

“I did promise her she could have the day off when she starts her period.” Dad says, carrying a steaming mug of hot chocolate into the room. “Here you are sweetie. Chocolate is good for periods.”

“Thanks Dad.” John grins, accepting the mug. The TVs already on, the couch is covered in blankets and pillows so he's all set for a day of TV on the couch.

“You're welcome. Now I'll be in my study, I have work to do. Call me if you need anything.” Dad kisses the top of his sons head before turning to head back upstairs. “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Comes the half out of it reply.

 

John snuggles in to enjoy the TV. Maybe his period wouldn't be so bad? He gets the day off school, special hot chocolate from Dad,  _ and _ treats from Dave.

Sure, periods are regarded as the path to womanhood, but it won't be that bad right? His masculinity isn't that fragile. He can handle bleeding out of his vagina once a month, right? It might help him grow stronger and all that.

John has never been more wrong in his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And then John stays on the couch all day watching movies until Dave and Jane come over from school, and John and Dave curl up together and eat chocolate.


	14. 13 Years Old. Happy Birthday John!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its John and Janes birthday party. They get a kitten that hates everyone except John.  
> Later, John, Rose, Dave and Jade make a friendship pact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, enjoy! Please comment your thoughts! Kudos are great and all but I need comments!  
> I've been a little slow writing this bc of work and Christmas retail! I've got two 9 hour and one 8 hour shift over friday and the weekend and a 10 hour shift boxing day. I've already had two nine hours and an eight hour this week.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you! Happy birthday dear John and Jaaaane, happy birthday to you!” The crowd surrounding the cake cheers, all six excited for their best friends birthday.

Since it's their 13th birthday party, both twins are having a sleepover. John's got his friends; Dave, Rose and Jade sleeping over, while Jane's got her friends; Dirk, Roxy and Jake sleeping over. It's a really weird coincidence that John and Jane's friends are all twins with each other, as are they. Isn't it funny how life works?

John and Jane simultaneously take a deep breath and blow out the candles. Everyone cheers, all in celebration for their friends. Dad, holding back tears of pride for his children, holds the knife over the cake. John and Jane's hands join his, and together, they cut the first slice of cake.

The cake is a simple sponge cake, yet lavishly decorated with icing and little iced ornaments and sprinkles. It's larger than Dad's normal cakes because it's a shared birthday cake. Dave readily accepts the first slice of cake being handed out. He's always been hooked on Dad's cooking, from his first bite of the simple rice and vegetables years ago.

Of course, being the birthday children, Jane and John have to wait until everyone else has a slice before they can have one of their own.

Even though they still have to wait, the cake is still delicious.

Dad smiles proudly, pride oozing from every orifice of his body. He has the best birthday present for them. She's a little...temperamental, but they've always begged him for a pet. It's not a puppy (while cute, they are pretty messy and need constant attention he’ll have to supply) or a rabbit (although they've promised to clean up after it, Dad knows he'll be the one to do it), but a kitten. Cats are easy. He's always been a cat person, he knows that cats are generally low maintenance-all they really need is a warm bed (not necessarily a cat bed), a few toys, love and affection and good food.

Once everyone's done with the cake, Dad heads into the kitchen to collect the surprise present. Roxy and Dave, Jane and John's best friends respectively, know about this plan already. They share a knowing glance, which increases tenfold as Dad reenters the room holding a cat carrier.

“I have a special present for the birthday kids!” Dad announces, carrying the cat carrier into the room. John and Jane both perk up in excitement, Jane bouncing on her seat and John making a strange high pitched noise. “You've been begging me for a pet for ages. So, I got you a kitten!”

Dad opens the cage door after setting it down on the table. The little kitten walks out, ambling out slowly, taking in the world around her. She's mainly black, with a white muzzle, paws, chest and the tip of her tail. Her eyes are a dark blue hue, looking a little worried as she stands before the twins.

John stops his high pitched squeaking noise and holds his hand out for the kitten to sniff. She readily takes the opportunity, climbing up onto his hand. She's absolutely tiny. She allows Jane to stroke her head, purrs rumbling from her tiny body.

“Thank you dad…” John breathes, careful not to disturb the kitten. 

“What should we call her?” Jane asks.

“I vote Mittens. It's a good name.”

“Yeah…” Jane grins. “Thanks so much Dad.”

“You're welcome. Happy birthday you two.” Dad replies, smiling back at his children.

“Oh shit.” Dave leans over John's shoulder, shoving his face in close to Mittens. “What a fucking cute ball of fluff--AHHH FUCK!!”

Dave staggers backwards, clutching his nose. Apparently, Mittens does not take to kindly to being crowded, or swearing, or to Dave. She's swiped him across the face, only lightly, but enough to draw blood. 

Dad rushes to Dave's side, checking to see if he's alright. Dirk chucks a glare at Mittens, before helping Dad by running to grab the first aid kit under the kitchen sink.

Jane recoils in horror a little, but John clutches Mittens closer to his chest. She snuggles up to him and purrs. She's so tiny and adorable and even though he should really see if Dave's okay (he's fine), he can't help but hold Mittens to his chest.

Dave will always be his best friend, but now he has competition for John's affections. It seems that both Dave and Mittens know this, if the glares they give each other are any indication.

 

☆☆☆

 

“A-S-S-H-O-L-E. There, I got a seven letter word, I get extra points.” Dave says smugly, placing down the letters much to Rose's indignation.

John, Rose, Dave and Jade are all in John's room, with Mittens curled up on John's lap. They've done presents (very considerate and well thought out gifts from Rose, Jade and Dave in payback for the considerate gifts John gave them for their birthdays), cake and dinner. Now it is sleepover time. Jane dibsed the living room, so John and his friends have to hang in his bedroom. They're all gathered around a scrabble board on the air mattress Rose and Jade are to share. John's more focused on stacking scrabble pieces on the sleeping Mittens than playing. Dave keeps making up words and using swear words. It's really a match between Rose and Jade, who actually care about the game.

“No.” Rose complains, moving the letters back. “Swear words aren't allowed.”

“Says who, the Scrabble Gods?” Dave retaliates. Playing scrabble with Rose and Dave is always entertaining.

“No, the rule book.”

“Which you conveniently aren't showing us!”

“Guys!” Jade interrupts, ever the peacemaker. “Let's just allow it, ok? Dave's not going to stop with the swear words, and Rose isn't going to stop with the complaining about it. Now, if you don't mind, it's my go.”

Jade adds an ‘e’ and an ‘r’ to the already placed down ‘flow’ to create ‘flower’. “It's your go John!”

John takes a break from placing scrabble pieces on Mittens by adding a ‘far’ to the side of a ‘t’ to create ‘fart’. Dave grins, high fiving John. Rose looks a little disgusted, but doesn't say anything.

Rose then adds an ‘ulance’ to an already existing ‘flat’ to create the word ‘flatulence’. As always, showing off her extensive vocabulary is some weird battle of wills and one-upmanship for her. She seems to think that John cares that she one-upped him, but it's quite the opposite. He more cares about Mittens.

The game continues on like this for quite some time. However long pauses begin to occur during turns, so much so that everyone begins to lose interest. John and Dave pull out their DS’s to have a Pokémon battle. Jade pulls out a little sketch pad and begins to scribble away. Rose has a book-1984 by George Orwell-and is attempting to show off the cover subtly to her friends.

Eventually they give up on Scrabble. They switch on a movie and get settled into bed.

 

With limited bed space, everyone's forced to share a bed. No one really cares though, it's just a bed.

Rose and Jade are sharing the air mattress. It's a double size, so it's got plenty of room for the two girls, and their stuffed toys.

John and Dave are sharing John's bed. It's queen size, and incredibly soft and comfortable. Dave immediately stretches out, taking up as much space as he can. Mittens, also sharing the bed, does not take to kindly to this. She curls up on John's pillow, keeping one eye on Dave.

Ghostbusters crackles as background noise, and the lighting is dim and calming. Despite Dave taking up all his space and the relatively early time, John finds he's pretty tired.

“Do you guys think...we'll all be best friends forever?” He mumbles, throwing out the question. There's a pause, as three pairs of eyes stare at him. Then, they all rush to answer.

“Well it's improbable we'll all be best friends forever, but I hope we are.” Rose replies first.

“Fuck yeah.” Dave agrees.

“Of course we will!” Jade double agrees.

“We should make a friendship pact. To make sure. I want us to be friends forever.” John says.

“Like a blood pact?” Rose questions. Three pairs of eyes stare at her in alarm.

“What? No! Like write it on paper or something.” John replies.

Rose hums, and everyone else is unsure whether she is disappointed or not. It's a little unnerving.

John rolls over to his bedside table. Pulling the drawer open, he takes out a pen and a piece of paper. Then, followed by Dave, he joins the girls on their bed.

“What should I write?” John asks, looking around for answers.

“If it's a true pact, it should start with all our names.” Rose supplies.

John nods, before placing the paper on his knees and hunching over it.  _ ‘John Egbert, Rose Lalonde, Dave Strider and Jade Harley hereby promise to be best friends forever.’  _ John writes. He squints at it, before Dave rolls his eyes and slides John's glasses on his face for him.

“Thanks Dave!” John smiles at his friend. “Anyway, does it sound good so far?”

“You should add how we'll stick together through thick and thin.” Jade suggests.

“You should make it so we're best friends until the end of time. It sounds more poetic that way.” Rose adds. 

“Done!” John pops up after writing their additions down. “You got anything to add Dave?”

“This is dumb.”

“What! Dave, that's not a suggestion!” John gasps, amidst Rose and Jade's offended noises.

“No shit Sherlock, oh please, seduce me with those deductive skills.” Dave rolls his eyes, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

“Oh shut up!” John laughs, shoving Dave lightly on the shoulder. “Just give us something to add to it. It's got to have contributions from all of us to be a proper friendship pact!”

Dave squints at the paper, reading over it. He seems skeptical, but still adds his comment. “You should add that we all trust each other and all that other friendly bullshit. But you should also add that the four of us wouldn't even be friends if it weren't for you John. If it weren't for you, I'd still be the friendless weirdo trailing after his brother all the time. You didn't judge me that day, you didn't see a monstrosity, you just saw a new friend. And I know you befriended Jade and Rose in similar ways too. It probably wasn't as symbolic or dramatic, but you're still the reason why we're all friends today.”

“Dave…” John whispers, tears in his eyes. “That's so sweet…” In a rush, John scoops Dave up in a hug. Rose and Jade join in on the action, the four creating a four-person hug pile.

Dave tries to get away at first, but eventually succumbs to the hug. Dave is incredibly skinny and lanky and pretty awkward to hug, but the others don't notice or care.

Eventually they all break apart and John begins scribbling on the stupid friendship pact note. He adds the stuff Dave said, with the exception of all the gushing about him. The pact now reads;

_ ‘John Egbert, Rose Lalonde, Dave Strider and Jade Harley hereby promise to be best friends forever. They promise to stick together through thick and thin, and trust each other with everything. They will be best friends until the end of time. Signed John Egbert, Rose Lalonde, Dave Strider and Jade Harley.’ _

Everyone signs the note with their signatures before John folds it up, and places it in his underwear drawer. The pact is now complete.

 

All four somewhat satisfied with the pact, they head back on into bed.

Ghostbusters is still playing, the light from the TV the only thing illuminating the dark room. 

“Goodnight everyone.” Jade says, snuggling down into her bed and shutting her eyes. Choruses of ‘Goodnight Jade’s’ and ‘sweet dreams’ see her off to dreamland.

John is next to go to sleep, despite protests that he's not tired. Even his favourite movie couldn't save him from his tiredness.

Dave teases him, considering putting sharpie all over his face. That side wins out, and he doodles a penis leading into John's mouth on his cheek. Rose is very disappointed. Ironically, for all Dave's bullying, he's out like a light just 5 minutes after John falls asleep.

Rose is last to fall asleep, putting down her knitting project and finally laying her head down to rest. 

It's been a fun, yet long day for all of them. They've still got many more adventures to go on, but right now they need rest.


	15. 13 Years Old. John and Rose Have a Fling.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Rose date for a month, make Dave and Jade jealous, and then promptly both realise they're gay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this isn't johndave, but this chapter is very important ficwise bc it sets up several (three) character arcs. So please tell me what you think in the comments below! It's integral to my writing process. As always, enjoy!

“I still can't believe they're dating.” Jade huff whispers to Dave. “They're so mismatched!”

“I know right. The goth chick and the nerd.” Dave agrees, shaking his head. “What is the world coming to?”

Jade and Dave are of course, talking about the recent development in the group. Rose and John have started dating. A shock for everyone, and a source of anger and jealousy for Jade and Dave. However if you ask them, they'll deny the jealousy and just say they're annoyed that their best friends are ditching them.

They've been bitching about it with each other at pretty much every given opportunity. Like right now, in art class. Art class is chill. Jade’s actually working on her art project while Dave's just doodling on the table. Both are discussing John and Rose's relationship, not exactly in a positive manner.

“They're like chalk and cheese! John isn't even Rose's type!” Jade proclaims. This isn't exactly true. Rose's type is balls of sunshine, or those who can match her wit. John is one of those things.

“I know what do you mean! Rose isn't John's type either. John doesn't even have a type!” Dave digs his pen into the table.

“Have you seen them together? They're super awkward.” Jade, expression normally so happy, sneers in amusement.

“I saw him try to kiss her yesterday.” Dave snickers. “He stood there with his eyes tightly shut and lips puckered for a minute and she didn't even notice. What a dork.”

“Which one?” Jade asks before correcting herself. “Oh wait, nevermind, it's John. Obviously it's John. Whenever something nerdy or dorky or awkward is going on, the source is always John.”

“Hey Jade...that was a little rude.” Dave frowns a little. Yeah, he bullies John all the time, but Jades taking it a little too far. Okay, he may be taking this too far as well...

“You're right…” Jade slumps in her seat, eyes downcast. “I'm sorry, their relationship just has me in a tizzy I suppose. I hate being mean! But I guess I was caught up in your rudeness.”

“Yeah, I guess I was being an asshole about it too. Whatever makes them happy I guess, even though we think they're the most mismatched couple in history.” Dave sighs. “If they're happy together, as their friends, we should probably be happy for them too, as gay as that sounds..”

“Maybe they really do like-like each other.” Jade says, perking up. Despite her happy posture, there's sadness in her eyes. “Maybe we shouldn't talk about them behind their backs like this.”

Dave is kind of a petty person. He very much does not like the new development in Rose and John's relationship. It makes him feel kind of weird, and seeing them together gives him a gross feeling in his gut. But, maybe he should let it go and be happy for them. They are his best friends after all. 

“Yeah you're right…” Dave admits. 

“And we should be doing our work, and talking about normal, happy, non-bitchy things!” Jade grins, a little wobbly.

The conversation turns away from John and Rose and towards other normal, happy non-bitchy things. However both parties still have that topic resting in their mind. It gnaws at both of them, only somewhat sedated from the sort-of-pact to support John and Rose.

 

☆☆☆

 

Love is a strong and powerful force. It is fairly easy to tell when people are in love. It is also fairly easy to tell when people do not love each other.

Sure, platonic love holds strong between Rose Lalonde and John Egbert, but romantic love does not exist between them. Both are confused young teens, latching onto the closest willing and living thing in an effort to feel normal. John's a boy, he's supposed to like girls, and lo and behold, Rose is a girl. Rose’s mom is insistent that she finds a nice boy, so that's what she did. They're using each other as a crutch in order to secure their perception of their heterosexuality, without realising they're doing so.

They're both trying to make it work and hoping that it does. However it is fairly obvious that they will not last. Nevertheless, they try.

 

As always, John, Rose, Dave and Jade are eating lunch in the cafeteria. Chatter from other tables floats around the area. Their own chatter joins it, metaphorically floating with the rest.

John holds a grape in front of Rose in some weird attempt to get her attention. She's too busy talking to Jade about their shared Biology class to notice. Dejectedly, John sets down the grape on her plate. Absentmindedly, she picks it up and pops it in her mouth.

John thought having a girlfriend would be a little different. Dave's had loads of girlfriends, and told him loads of stories as to what they're like. Of course, each is different, but generally there's hand-holding, kissing and physical affection. Between him and Rose, there's nothing, not that he really minds.

“...right Jo-babe?” Rose's voice snaps him out of his thoughts.

“Yeah Rosie?” John replies, nickname coming easy off his tongue. That's probably because adding the ‘ie’ to the end of her name is easy and he can do it with his friends. He's called Dave ‘Davey’ a few times casually, and it was pretty funny to see his reaction. 

“Jade and I were just discussing Biology and she said that the arteries hold the most nutrients in the bloodstream when it's obviously capillaries. You agree with me, right?”

John is in Rose and Jade's Biology class. He has no idea what they're talking about, he never pays attention. He usually is asleep, doodling idly in his book or texting Dave. Unsure as to what to do, he does what he knows boyfriends on TV do-just agree with his girlfriend.

“Yeah I agree.” John says. Luckily, Rose seems to be basing her boyfriend/girlfriend dynamics off of the same TV show John was watching. She turns back to her conversation with Jade, who looks a little annoyed.

 

John feels there's a disconnect between them when there's not supposed to be. Rose knows there's definitely something missing in their interactions. Both don't want to say anything about it, but know they will have to one day.

For now, they keep everything shoved down until they don't feel anything at all.

 

☆☆☆

 

“This way, my lady.” John gestures with his hand towards the rope leading up to the treehouse in his backyard. 

“Why thank you.” Rose mock curtsies (she just makes the gesture, as she's wearing long pants today), and climbs up the rope ladder.

John follows her, making his way inside the little room all while balancing a plate of snacks. The treehouse is a small, sturdy thing situated on an oak tree in the yard. Dad build it as a Christmas present to John and Jane. It's covered in cushions, blankets and dozens of childhood memories evidenced pretty much everywhere. In both John and Jane's friendship groups, the treehouse is regarded as the best thing ever. Apart from their respective twins room, the treehouse is the prime hangout spot. Demand for the treehouse grew so large that Dad had to make a roster. Today is John's turn.

Rose is already perched on a cushion when John comes in. “Hello John.”

“Hello Rose.” John replies, putting the plate of goodies down on the floor and scooting over to her. “What's a girl like you doing in a place like this?”

Rose snorts, smiling a little woefully. She takes an offered snack, popping it in her mouth. She avoids John's gaze and the two slip into an uncomfortable silence. They're good friends, and normally when Rose is over they'll have a blast, but now that they're dating it's awkward. There's awkward touching and non-touching, and the weird presence of Dad hovering in the background whenever Rose comes over.

Both have something swimming in their mind. A single thought both are just now daring to entertain. They've both thought it through, and perhaps now is the time to voice it?

“John. I believe we should break up.” Rose blurts out all of a sudden, finally releasing what's been building for so long.

“Oh thank God.” John agrees. “I was thinking the same thing.”

Both teenagers share a relieved smile, no hard feelings whatsoever. In fact, they seem even happier now.

“May I ask...why?” John asks. “I'm not mad or anything, I just want to know.”

”Well.” Rose takes a deep breath and brushes down her pants, steadying herself. “I suppose whatever it was between us never felt right. John, you're incredibly sweet and all, but I much prefer you as a friend. Through no fault of your own, I find myself unattracted to you. Recently I've found myself more swayed by those of feminine persuasion, which isn't fair to you. It is also the fact I find myself with a crush on another bespectacled beauty.”

“Um, what does that mean?” John asks once more. “Like you've explained it in Rose terms, but can you explain it in John terms please?”

“Dating you made me realise that I'm a lesbian and I have a crush on Jade.” Rose says flatly.

“Oh. That makes sense.” John replies, much more simply than Rose was expecting.

“What do you mean it makes sense?” Rose replies incredulously, staring at him with wide, mascara lined eyes.

“I mean like you always hang around Jade and you're always trying to impress her with knowledge of whatever subject you happen to think of in that moment. And you always lean in a little closer to her, but you've always liked your personal space.” John smiles back at her stunned face.

“I must be obvious for it to be noticed by you of all people.” Rose mumbles under her breath.

“Don't worry Rose, I'll be your wingman!” John replies ever-oblivious to the fact Rose just insulted him.

“Anyway John. May I ask why you wanted to break up with me?” Rose changes the subject slightly in hopes that John will forget about his offer. John as a wingman would be...disastrous.

“Oh well…” John looks away in embarrassment. “I think the only reason why I accepted the invitation of being your boyfriend is because you were a girl. Boys are supposed to like girls right? But I realised I didn't like you, or any girl, in the like like way. I think I like boys, but I'm a boy?” The last bit comes out as a question, and John's got a confused look on his face.

“Boys can like boys, that's called being gay, you dork.” Rose replies playfully, laughing a little. “I'm a girl and I like girls. It's not as complicated as we're making it out to be.”

“Please don't patronise me this is a very serious issue for me.” John pleads. 

Rose pauses, looking at him. “I'm sorry. I should've been more considerate on the matter, especially since I used you to discover my own lesbianism myself. I know first hand how confusing it is and it must be even worse for you.”

“It's fine. Sorry I'm just confused is all.” John mumbles, collapsing on the pillows. “Everything's big and confusing and I think I like boys. I'm a boy and I should like girls, but I don't…”

“That's okay.” Rose reassures, laying a hand on John's shoulder in comfort. “I had the same feeling. You'll get there eventually, whether it be tomorrow or next year or even in a decade. As your friend, I promise to support you.” 

“I'll support you too Rose. I'm glad that we're still friends.” John grins up at the ceiling. Rose flumps down next to him, humming contentedly.

“Of course. Fighting over a past relationship is dumb. We're best friends first and foremost.”

“Do you remember when we first met?” John asks.

“Yes. You stole my pencil and then I kicked you in the knee and then you cried and told teacher and she made us go to the get-along corner.” Rose laughs a bit, grinning. “That was a pretty good pencil.”

“I know. That's why I stole it.” John laughs back. “But I'm glad I stole your pencil. I'm glad that we became friends. Honestly, I much prefer you as a friend than as a girlfriend.”

“Likewise. Why did we ever date in the first place? Dating friends is awkward.”

“So your crush on Jade is awkward?”

“Ahhhh!” Rose rolls over and stuffs her face in a pillow. “I don't want to talk about it!”

“Well you're gonna have to!” John laughs, poking her back. “I can't wingman for you if I don't know the full details!”

Rose groans harder, burying herself deeper into the cushions. John just laughs, glad that he's not dating Rose anymore and glad that their friendship isn't destroyed. In fact, it seems even stronger than ever. 

Now Rose is a lot more confident in herself and her sexuality. Now John isn't as confident, but he still knows that a relationship with Rose isn't the right thing for either of them. They may have used each other in an effort to feel normal, but do you really need to feel normal when you have friends that support you?

 

☆☆☆

 

The fan turns lazily on the ceiling, blowing down on the boy lying prone on his bed. It stirs up a cool breeze in his stuffy room. Outside is boiling hot, so John's made extra sure to keep his room nice and cool. John's munching on an orange ice block, in an effort to keep cool on this hot summers day. His phone lies beside him, connected by earphones blasting music into his ears.

Summer is hot and gross. It's especially worse with a binder-it traps the heat and the sweat pooling in between your boobs to create the worst experience ever. John complained to Dad about this  **once** and now suddenly he can't wear a binder during really hot days anymore. It sucks, but John can understand why.

This particular summer day is hot and humid and very gross. It sucks.

The phone beside him dings. It's a message from Dave.

_ ‘its so fucking hot today i s2g im gonna melt like the fucking witch from wizard of oz’ _

John rolls over, tapping out a reply.  _ ‘haha can't you just shift into something small or something?’ _

_ ‘john you racist fuck thats not how it works.’ _ Dings the fast reply. _ ‘youre my friend and all but thats the stupidest fucking thing ive ever heard.’ _

_ ‘it sounds quite reasonable to me…’  _ John replies, a little taken back.

_ ‘thats bc your dad doesnt get angry at you for shifting except for shifting into a human and youre not a shifter’ _

_ ‘shit nevermind’ _

_ ‘i didnt say that’ _

_ “anyway hows you and rose going.’ _

John pauses in his reply. They only broke up yesterday, so Dave doesn't know yet. Usually John tells Dave everything immediately but for some reason he didn't feel like telling Dave.

_ ‘we broke up yesterday lmao’ _

_ ‘oh shit im sorry i didnt know’ _

_ ‘what happened’ _ Comes Dave's prompt reply. 

_ ‘eh. it was bound to happen anyway. she realised she was a lesbian because of it.’ _

_ ‘oh jeez you were that bad’  _ Comes the snarky reply. John lets out an insulted snort.

_ ‘what! no! it was mutual!’ _

_ ‘haha what’ _

_ ‘i think the reason why i didnt like her in that way was because im gay. maybe. im not sure yet.’  _ John types back after some consideration.

_ ‘oh thats um good for you buddy’ _

_ ‘huh? whats wrong?’  _ Worry overtakes John. Dave doesn't seem too thrilled about this.

_ ‘nothings wrong sorry its just as hot as naked kim kardashian here’ _

_ ‘i support you dude’ _

_ ‘and im sorry you and rose broke up’  _ The next three texts are in quick succession, much like the rest of Dave's texting style.

_ ‘don't be!’  _ John texts back reassuringly. _ ‘im glad we did honestly.’ _

_ ‘im glad youre ok tho usually break ups end messy trust me’ _

_ ‘is melissa tagging you in ‘my ex sucks’ memes on facebook again?’  _ John hardly contains his laughter. Melissa and Dave broke up a year ago after dating for two months, but sometimes Melissa gets upset about it and tags Dave in insulting memes. It's pretty funny, but John's glad Rose isn't like that.

_ ‘yeah the fucking bitch’ _

 

The conversation continues, moving smoothly from topic to topic. It switches from Melissa to the new Ghostbusters coming out to whatever they're doing in the holidays. While John was dating Rose, there was a slight awkwardness in their conversations. Now it's gone. But there is the underlying feeling of...something. Something unexplained and unexplored just waiting to be uncovered.

 

☆☆☆

 

The breaks between classes where students have just a few minutes to grab their stuff and head to their next class is the most frantic and busy time of the school day. The hallways are packed with students opening their lockers and bags and stuffing stuff in them. Rose Lalonde is one of these students, busy stuffing her maths textbook into her bag. It's already overspilling with yarn, so she's having a little bit of trouble. Her locker is swinging open, displaying the photos inside for all to see. Whatever. They're just photos of her cat.

Finally she's managed to shove her maths supplies into her backpack. Smiling in satisfaction, she slams her locker shut and swings her bag on her back.

“I hear you're single.” Dave is standing next to Rose's locker, leaning against it in a casual manner. Rose can tell that despite his casual manner, Dave is pretty tense.

“Oh. Hello David.” Rose expertly hides her shock in having him suddenly appear like he did. Instead, she begins to head down the hallway to her next class. “I didn't realise you were interested in me.”

“I'm not.” Dave denies, hurrying a little to keep up. “I just wanna know if you've been treating my boy right. He said you were a lesbian.”

Oh of course he did. John's sweet, but he tends to tell Dave everything if Dave prods enough. Instead of answering, Rose deflects the question. “Perhaps I was wrong about who you were interested in. Perhaps you're interested in John.”

“Wha-wha-what! No! I'm worried because you're a lesbian and he's trans-” Dave is, as Rose predicated, very flustered at Rose's suggestion. She likes to tease him with the gay talk, because he provides a great reaction. He's very internally homophobic, but as Rose has reminded him many times, there is such a thing as bisexuality.

Rose stops dead in her tracks. “I wasn't aware my personal life was up for discussion. But if you insist on voicing your opinion on it, I'll tell you. I broke up with John mainly for that reason, it wasn't fair to him. As well as the fact I had no romantic feelings for him.”

Dave has the decency to look ashamed. “Sorry man, I just want to look out for him.”

“Whatever. Maybe I was really just letting you have John. I mean you do hang around him and talk about him 24/7. You're pretty much dedicated to him. Like right now, getting all up in my business about our past relationship because I'm a lesbian and it might hurt his feelings even though that's utter bullshit. You leap to his defence without considering anything else, or how he doesn't even need defending. Maybe you're in love with him. Maybe that's the real reason you were so interested in our break up-you have a crush on him” Rose winks, resuming her power walk to her maths class and leaving a flabbergasted Dave behind. Her words made her seem pissed with him, but her body posture is telling him she's fucking with him yet again.

 

Of course Rose has joked about that gay stuff before. But she's never outright said Dave's in love with him. He's not in love with John. He's not gay! Whenever he's said this to Rose, she's always countered with ‘bisexuality exists David.’

He's never considered it really. His dad is always so angry about the topic. Whenever homosexuality is mentioned (usually Dirk attempting to get dad to acknowledge him) dad always has a massive rant and gets pretty angry. It's a scary thing, and doesn't exactly make Dave want to consider discovering his own sexuality, like his friends have over the years. God forbid if John is mentioned somehow.

John...does he really have a crush on him like Rose is suggesting? Does this mean he doesn't respect John's identity as a male? That would truly be ironic considering it was what he was getting stroppy with Rose about it earlier. It's not a good irony. Maybe she's right and he’s not straight, but bisexual. He doesn't know. Rose likes to act like she's right all the time, and most times she is, not that Dave will ever tell her that. 

Rose is right about how he treats John though. Ever since they first met, and John held his hand out for Dave to grab, despite his true form, Dave has been dedicated to John. John was the boy who gave him friends, food and company. Someone to laugh with, to be with, to stay up all night texting, a best friend through thick and thin. John has helped Dave through thick and thin, encouraging him in subtle little ways. Those sunglasses and the camera John gave him for his 13th birthday...They granted him the independence he needed. His room is filled with so many photographs that he’s taken with the camera. John has done so much for him, Dave wants to do the same for him.

If he was in love with John, that would explain the tightness in his chest when John and Rose were dating. It explains the happy butterflies he gets when John calls him friend, or touches him. It explains why he stays up so late at night, sending messages to John that aren't answered until hours later. 

Oh God, he's in love with John. He's uttterly and hopelessly in love with John.

 

“Hey wait up!” Dave calls out after Rose, coming to his senses. “We have maths together!”

So he actually has a crush on John? And he has for a while from the sounds of it. That's just great. His feelings will never be reciprocated because while John may accept a shifter like him as a friend, he'll never want him romantically. Who would? Dave shouldn't even bother trying to ask John out.

Right now he should focus on other things, because somehow Rose will find out she was right and absolutely devastate him with that knowledge. And his feelings are too confusing and hurt too much for him to focus on. So it's time to focus on other, less confusing and hurtful things. Like maths.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoiler: Jaderose is next chapter! Johndave is in a little while, but its coming soon!


	16. 14 Years Old. Rose Gets a Girlfriend.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose asks Jade out on a date. It goes better than she expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It is I, your local Australian lesbian here to deliver on some beautiful girls. I bet you this chapter won't get as much attention as the others because of the two girls being romantic and coupley, but whatevs its not like gay ships get way more attention than lesbian ships or whatever no waaaay.  
> Anyway I'm going on holidays for a week+ so I may not be able to update? Who knows fam

The Harley residence is the biggest house on its respective street. It's got three storeys, with the third storey being used purely as storage for all the Harleys’ stuff. The second storey is the bedrooms, and the first storey is the kitchen, living room and all the display rooms. The yard is covered in flower beds all in full bloom, radiating beautiful smells and gorgeous colours, all courtesy of Jade. 

This is where Rose Lalonde finds herself on a warm Sunday afternoon, holding the giant pot containing a rose bush standing on the porch of the Harleys house. Of course she's been over to Jade's house before, but never uninvited, and never with the intention of asking Jade out. The potted plant was John's idea. He's very determined to be Rose's wingman, and is doing a somewhat better job than Rose expected. His reasoning for the plant was the gift appeals to Jade's interest in gardening, as well as reminding Jade of the girl who gave them to her.

The pot itself is pretty heavy, and is getting dirt all over Rose's clean clothes (particularly her white blouse). But it smells gorgeous, with a beautiful blood-red flower. Rose is certain Jade will love it.

Mustering her courage, Rose brings her hand up to knock on the large oak door. Her knocks echo loudly through the house, quickly initiating a response from inside.

“I've got it!” An excited voice calls as the door swings open. “Oh...Rose, it's you! I wasn't expecting you to come over today.”

It's Jade. She looks as beautiful as ever. Her dark hair is tied up in a loose plait that travels all the way down her back. Situated on top of her head is a large-brimmed straw hat, obviously designed to keep the sun off. She's wearing slightly faded jeans with a green and white striped midriff top. Hooked on her belt is a pair of gardening gloves, patterned with little flowers in a variety of colours. When she sees Rose at her doorstep, her mouth widens into the biggest smile Rose has ever seen. It makes Jade a thousand times more beautiful, drawing Rose into a trance-like state.

“I hope you don't mind that I showed up uninvited.” Rose says, regaining her composure. “But I wanted to ask you something.”

“That's fine, you know that you're always welcome! What is it you wanted to ask me Rose?” Jade looks curiously at the pot in Rose's hands, but she focuses most of her attention on her friend.

“This is for you.” Rose states, pushing the pot of roses into Jade's arms. Jade carries it with ease, muscles bulging under the weight. Rose almost gets distracted by them. Almost. She has a mission to complete goddammit she refuses to get distracted by how buff Jade is. “I wanted to ask you if...you'd like to go on a date with me. And then afterwards, if it goes well, maybe be my girlfriend?”

“Oh…” Jade blanks, deep blush spreading across her dark features. “I…”

“I'm sorry!” Rose balks. “Just forget about it, forget I said anything!”

“No...I want to go on a date with you.” Jade murmurs, smiling softly. “Let's go into the garden, I already have a place for this baby. There we can discuss date plans, if you'd like.” Jade motions towards the pot, grinning uncontrollably.

“Alright, that sounds good.” Rose shares her smile, confidence working its way back into her voice.

 

Jade leads Rose through her garden, pace slow due to the heavy pot and Rose's own slow walk. Rose thinks that Jade's garden reflects the personality of the girl; bright, colorful and beautiful. The garden is full of life, so vibrant and full of personality.

The two girls halt in front of a small stone seat, situated under an arch covered in honeysuckle. A bird bath sits to the left of the seat, devoid of birds at the moment, but two little plants are floating in pots in the water. Jade sets the rose bush in between the birdbath and the seat, leaning down to tend to it. Feeling no invitation needed, Rose positions herself on the seat, next to where Jade is working.

“This is a little loveseat area I made.” Jade smiles to herself. “It's meant to be a place to sit down and relax, to watch the birdbath and smell the honeysuckle and read a book or something.”

“It's lovely. I think you've done a very good job Jade. I particularly like the bird bath.” Rose comments.

“Thanks! I've got two little plants in there right now, a sundew and a venus fly trap. They're pretty cute.” Jade glances at the birdbath and the plants in them. She stands up, brushing the dirt off her clothes.

“Ah. The carnivorous plants. An excellent choice.” Rose chuckles.

Jade plonks down beside Rose on the seat. “Like you getting the rose bush as a gift for me! Red roses represent passion, and it's a really sweet and thoughtful gift!”

“Well yes.” Rose puffs up her chest a little bit. “I must admit it wasn't entirely my idea, but I'm glad you like it.”

“Like it? I love it! And...I'd love to go on a date with you in the future.” Jade stares lovingly at the rose bush and the girl herself. “Where do you want to go?”

“Oh...I hadn't thought that far ahead. Perhaps the stereotypical dinner date would be good for the first date?” Rose replies, still a little shocked that Jade accepted her date proposal. It was John's persistent pushing that drove her to asking Jade out, she never would have done it by herself. She would've let those feelings be and never acted on them, wanting to save her and Jade's friendship.

“That sounds perfect! There's this really nice Vietnamese place down the road that makes really nice fried rice! I haven't tried all of their menu, but what I've had is delicious!” Jade claps her hands together in delight. 

“That sounds lovely.” Rose agrees, nodding her head to hide her blush. “My shout.”

“What! I can't let you pay for all of it!” Jade protests, looking at Rose with wide eyes.

“Well I asked you on the date, so it's only fair that I pay. No Jade, nothing you say can sway me.” Rose waves away Jade's look of concern.

“If you insist…” Jade trails off, gaze turning to the plant. “Are you free tomorrow?”

“Well yes, do you want to go tomorrow?” Rose is very surprised. This is going a lot better than she expected. “We could do a 12 o’clock lunch type thing.”

“Sounds perfect!” Jade chirps. She places her hand on top of Rose's, turning her flushed face to look at Rose's own. “I'm glad you asked me out… I've liked you for a while but I always was too afraid to say anything.”

“Me too…” Rose smiles shyly up at her. “I've liked you for quite some time too, and I'm glad you accepted my date invitation!”

“I'm surprised you asked me out! And so romantically and everything. Not just with flowers but a whole new plant. I'll look at it everyday and whenever I see it I'll be reminded of you.” Jade positively beams, just like always. It's the goddamn cutest thing Rose has ever seen.

“That's really romantic Jade…”  Rose smiles. “I can't wait until our date…”

“Me too!” Jade agrees. Slowly, shyly, the girls take each others hands in their own. Calloused hands used to work despite their age meets slim, dainty hands, manicured to perfection.

  
Romance is different for everyone, Rose and Jade's romance blooms slowly, sprouting anew from a seedling and steadily growing into a big strong tree. They started as friends, and now the two girls have a chance at something more…


	17. 14 Years Old. Bathroom Talks and Discoveries.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After shifting for over a week and a half, Dave reaches the end of his tether and is forced to shift back. Lucky for him, John is always there to comfort him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I haven't posted in a while but whatever, I've been on holiday. I still am on holiday. I'm posting this in Canberra, capital of Australia right now! I'm buying a whole bunch of 50c postcards for a wall of postcards :)  
> It's been super fun and I've enjoyed the week with my bestie (still another day) but i miss my plants and my darling cat  
> Like always, feel free to leave reviews and comments!

“So theoretically yes, Adam Sandler is the president of the United States and I refuse to see it any other way. #notmypresident.” Dave finishes his long rant.

“Dave his movies are terrible. There is no way he is the current president of the United States or ever will hold that position.” Rose rebutts, rolling her eyes.

“They are not terrible!” John gasps in real, actual offence. “They're amazing!”

“Thank you John. At least someone agrees with me.” Dave says, receiving eye rolls from the girls. Ever since they started seriously dating, he's been getting a lot more eye rolls than usual. He thought Jade was his friend but apparently she prioritizes her girlfriend over him. How rude.

“You know I've always got your back dude!” John smiles at Dave, and Dave's heart stops. He's been in love with the boy for a while, and oh boy does it do some crazy things to him. Dave is pretty much utterly hopelessly in love with John. It kind of sucks, but not entirely.

“That's kinda gay dude.” Dave snickers, hiding his feelings with casual burns.

“You're kind of gay!” John protests, not really realising how lame the comeback was. Dave also doesn't seem to realize  how true his own statement was. “I was being genuine and you just shoot me down!”

“Sorry. But when you say shit like that it sounds pretty gay.” Dave shrugs. A small tremor shudders through his body, which he tries to cover with a yawn. He's been in the same form for around a week and a half now, and it's been taking its toll. It hurts so fucking much but he has to keep this form. If he wants to keep his friends and impress John, he has to keep the form. Luckily no one seems to really notice. 

“But it's true! You're my best friend ever, and I'll support you through thick and thin. No homo though.” John smiles back at him.

“Of course the no homo-” Dave stops mid-sentence, almost dry retching. Fuck! He actually can't hold this form any longer! He covers his mouth with a hand, standing up and shoving his chair back. “Sorry guys, I'll be back in a minute, I really need to do a shit.” He manages to force out.

He hurries towards the boys bathroom, praying he can make it in time. His friends, mainly John, cry out how telling everyone he needs to shit is gross and too much information.

 

“Hmmm…” Rose drums her fingers on the cafeteria table. “That seemed a little suspicious, don't you two think?”

“What do you mean by that Rose?” John asks. “He seemed alright to me.”

“Really John?” Jade frowns. “Really? He seemed a little sick to me. Maybe he has a fever.”

“No. It seemed shifter-related to me. Fevers don't cause full body spasms, at least not ones that allow him to be up and about.” Rose hums softly, frowning in concentration.

“Oh everything's shifter-related to you!” John throws his hands up in annoyance. “Who cares if he's a shifter, or a mutant shifter!? I don't!”

“He does.” Rose states before looking at her girlfriend and her best friend. “Have either of you read Dave's comic recently?”

“What, Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff? That thing?” John pulls a disgusted face. “No, I'm a supportive best friend and of course I've read a few but...not recently.”

Jade also shakes her head. “No...I've tried but I don't get it!”

“Well I believe if you look closely, it's a deep look into his homelife.”

“How close are you looking?” John sasses, snickering a little. Jade joins in on his laughter.

“No John, I'm serious. The continuous in joke of ‘the stairs bro’? That's a reference to Dave's dad's ‘training’.”

“Rose, how the fuck do you even think that?” John frowns. He's a little wary of Dave's ‘training’ too-he’s seen the bruises on his skin during sleepovers-but he thinks Rose's theory is a little far fetched. 

“Think about it.” Rose says, beginning to list her reasons. “Dave is a very secretive person, there's no way he'd tell us, even if we are his best friends. He needs to vent to something, and I've noticed he generally updates after he's gotten upset or angry about something. Or when he shows up to school with a limp or bruise he's trying to hide.”

“Are you saying...that he's being abused?” Jade asks, sadness and pity heavy in her features. “What about his brother?”

“Him too.” Rose nods. “I suspect neglect in Dirk’s case. John, you're the only one of us whose actually been to Dave's house before right?”

John just stares blankly at Rose, halfway out of his seat. “Yeah, only a few times. His dad always gives me the creeps. But I...I should probably go check on him. See if he's okay.”

“Alright, you know where he is?” Rose asks John, whose already gotten up in preparation of finding Dave.

“Yeah. Boys toilets. Like always.”

 

John gets up and hurries towards the boys toilets. As he walks, the more of what Rose said starts to make sense. He never really noticed through the eyes of his childhood innocence, but Dave's dad is abusing him.

It's been eight years, and not once has Dave's dad topped up his or his brothers lunch balance. It's like he did it once and then never bothered again. John's Dad is alright with making a sandwich for Dave everyday but that still flashes red flags.

John still remembers all those comparisons Dave made on his house to John's house. He remembers actually going to Dave's house, and the constant skulking prescence of Dave's dad looming over him even in different rooms. John remembers the last time he visited Dave's house. He'd just come out to his Dad, it was his first time going to Dave's house as John. He thought everything was fine but Dave's dad stared at him with such ferocity that they had to cut the playdate short. 

Sometimes Dave would say stuff that sounded...off. Like how there's nothing in his pantry except instant noodles and sometimes swords fall out. Or how his dad doesn't like his true form. He says that a lot.

But those bruises John catches glimpses of from time to time should have clued him in. John should have figured it out, should of told someone. Dave always brushed it off as casual accidents but John now realises how serious it is.

John pushes the door to the boys toilets open. Thankfully, it's empty except for a single stall locked shut. Quiet, echoey sobs sound from it. Shit. It's Dave.

“Dave? It's me, John. Are you alright?” John moves and raps on the door, and the crying comes to a halt.

“I'm fine. Go away.” Comes the reply. It's very obvious he isn't fine.

“I'm not leaving you! I know you're not okay, so let me in and I'll help you.” John asks.

“No! I'm fine! Leave me alone!” Dave's voice shrills higher and higher with each word

“Well you don't sound very fine!” John protests Dave's words quite calmly. 

“You wouldn't sound very fine if someone kept shouting at you while you were taking a piss!”

“Oh...sorry.” John backs away from Dave's stall. The bathroom echoes back into silence. John is pretty dense, but he knows Dave is avoiding him and is definitely not peeing. You don't cry while peeing, and normally, you'd make noises. Besides, Dave's story has changed-first it was a shit, now it's a piss. Getting down on his hands and knees, John peers underneath Dave's stall. He knows it's a breach of privacy, but he needs to make sure Dave is actually ok. 

Instead of Dave's ratty old sneakers, John is greated with the sight of silvery scaled feet. John suddenly understands everything.

 

“Dave? You're in cooldown mode aren't you?” John stands up, staring down the door. Judging from Dave's silence, it's the truth. After a pause, the door slowly swings open. John takes this as an invitation to step into the stall, locking it behind him. Dave may trust him, but he won't trust a stranger in the boys bathroom at school.

It's very cramped, especially due to rhe fact Dave has grown much bigger than the last time John saw him, sporting huge crows wings on his back. He's lost a lot of his baby-fluff, his fur and feathers now smoother and more consistent. Last time John saw this form, Dave was still young with all his baby fluff. Dave's feline eyes seem calm and rational, but his tail tells a different story. It lashes side to side, fluffed up in fear. 

However, the more John looks at Dave, the more he notices how things are bad-different. Like the dark bruises standing out against Dave's pale complexion. Or the miskempt look to Dave's wings and fur and feathers, and the hefty nick in one of his ears. They flick casually, intently focusing in on John.

“Dave…” He murmurs, reaching out to touch the boy. Dave doesn't budge, but he makes no indication of leaning towards John's touch either. Nevertheless, John takes Dave's gnarled crow hand in his own.

“I'm sorry.” Is the first thing out of Dave's mouth.

“Don't you dare.” John replies just as fast. “How long have you held it?”

“A week and a half.” Dave answers completely honestly. “Just give me a minute, please. I'll turn back in a minute. It just takes a little while.”

“Dave…” John squeezes Dave's hand in comfort. “You shouldn't be shifting for so long. You need breaks.”

“You say that like you know what it's like. Like someone who doesn't have to shift all the time.” Dave shakes his head.

“But you don't need to shift all the time!” John proclaims. 

Dave shakes his head harder, denying what John says. “Yes I do! I have to stay in my human form or else! You're looking at the same thing as I am! I'm not exactly a looker.”

“Don't say that! I mean sure, you're not exactly a looker, but who cares about that? Neither am I! But you're my best friend, and I don't want you deliberately hurting yourself like this! You can't hold onto your human form for so long, it causes massive strain on you! I'm holding your hand and I can feel how bad you're trembling. You've got such heavy bags under your eyes! You need to rest. You've over exerted yourself to the point where you physically can't shift anymore!” John guides Dave down into a sitting position, clutching both of Dave's crow hands in his own.

“You don't understand John. My father-” Dave protests, struggling to get up.

“No!” John pushes him back down. Gentle, yet forceful. “I'm sick of that asshole! He's your fucking dad and he's meant to love you through whatever but instead he’s forcing you to shift all the time!” 

“It's for the greater good! Imagine what people will think when they see me! The Strider's are a pretty big deal shifter family, and look what my parents got; a mutant and a worthless non-shifter.” Dave mumbles, looking down and avoiding John's gaze.

“That's your dad saying those things, not you. Dave…I've been thinking about this and I've come to a realisation...your dad is abusive.” John rubs Dave's hands soothingly, feeling the ripples of shock and fear course through him.

“What...no…” Dave's voice goes quiet, so quiet John has to lean in close to hear him. “My dad's not a...no, he's not! He loves us!”

“I'm so sorry Dave.” John feels his eyes dampening at his friends distressed state. “But the way he's treating you and Dirk isn't right.”

“He's not, he can't be!” Dave denies, shaking his head.

“He forces you to shift constantly into a form that suits him. He tells you you're worthless in your true form. He's never topped up your lunch balance-your food Dave! You always talk about his ‘training’ and it just sounds like bad news. You're covered in bruises as we speak Dave!”

“I fell.” Dave stubbornly denies.

“Yeah?” John raises an eyebrow in disbelief. “Where from?”

“...the staircase…” Dave admits.

“Did you fall or where you pushed?” John frowns, using his stern voice.

“John…” Dave whispers, closing his eyes.

“Dave. Answer the question, please. Did you fall. Or...where you pushed?” John is sterner now. He hates being rude and pushy but Dave leaves him no choice. John wants to make sure Dave is safe.

“I was pushed. He pushes me down there when I've slipped up during training, or accidently shift back...oh god. My dad is abusive.” Dave looks up at John with tear stained eyes and John feels his heart break then and there. John's seen Dave cry before, but never like this. His tears now are heartwrenching and terrifying and it hurts that all John can do is hold him until it's all over. It's truly terrifying to see someone usually so well composed break down like this.

“I'm sorry Dave…” John whispers, tears welling up in his own eyes. “But I promise I'll always be there for you. If you need a safe shelter from him, my house is always open. Dad loves you a lot. He'll love it if you're over more.”

Dave pulls John in closer, letting go of his hands in favour of wrapping his arms around John's middle. He buries his face into John's neck, beak digging in a little but John doesn't care. John rubs Dave's back soothingly, whispering gentle nothings into his ears.

“How did I not notice he was abusive before? When I saw that stuff on TV, I always thought the victims were pussies because they never got help. Now I know why-it's because they don't know.” Dave, for the first time in this conversation, looks John in the eye.

“It's okay Dave. It's not your fault. None of this is your fault.” John soothes, because that's all he can really do.

“He forces me to shift like into a human form all the time and gets angry when I'm not. It hurts to do it for too long. He knows this but he still...he still forces me to.” Shudders run up and down body and John's attention is more than ever drawn to the patterns of bruises on his torso. “He hates me like this. Mutant shifters kill those giving birth to them. The only reason he didn't kill me then and there is because my mother, in her dying breath, pleaded he protect the both of us when she couldn't. He hates me because I killed his wife. He reminds me of this fact every time he sees me and we're alone.”

“That's disgusting! When I see him next I'll give him a piece of my mind…” John shakes his head in disgust. But then, noticing the worry darting across Dave's face, he stops and turns his words into comforting ones. “Don't worry, it's alright. Next time you sleep over I'm makng sure you get the proper rest you need. I don't want to hear any complaints!”

Dave manages a smile, which looks a little strange with a beak, but it brings John great relief regardless.

 

The bell sounds, signalling the end of lunch. The two boys look up, neither attempting to make a move. 

“You should go to class.” Dave says, breaking the silence. “I don't want you to miss anything.”

“No. I'm not leaving you. Besides, I have PE and I'm on my period so it'll suck. I'd rather make sure you're okay after that bombshell was dropped on you.” John smiles. Once more, Dave's heart stammers in his chest. 

“Thank you. That means a lot.” Dave manages to smile back. John settles down beside Dave, so the two are sharing the toilet seat. John squeezes Dave's hand tightly to offer comfort.

“It's alright. And if he does anything more to you, tell me. I'm here to talk. And I promise you, one day, I'll get you out of there.”

Dave snorts. “Thanks, but how the fuck are you going to do that?”

“I dunno. I'll find a way.” John shrugs, and Dave is absolutely certain he will. Dave absolutely trusts John in this. “But to make it happen, you've got to tell me okay?”

“Yesh. I will. I'll try and let you know. But it'll be hard, you know?” Dave figures that if John's offering, he may as well. Rose often says he needs to open up to more people, and John's the one person he trusts more than anyone. It's this selfless kindness and determination that made him fall in love with the boy.

“That's alright. I know it'll be hard at first but I promise to support you and kick your dad's ass when the time comes.” John chuckles a little. “I'm sure Jade and Rose would love to help as well, same with Dad and Jane.”

Dave nods, smiling. He can always count on John to cheer him up, and make bleak, depressing situations full of hope. One of Dave's wings, moving of its own accord, wraps around John to pull him closer. The boy startles, before settling into the feathery embrace and giving him a wide smile.

Silence lapses between the two. But it's not a bad, awkward silence. It's a comforting one. Full of the promise of protection and friendship, and (Dave wishes) something more.


	18. 15 Years Old. Jobs and Revelations.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John has a job now. John is a big boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this was supposed to be a lot shorter and now it's like 2,400 + words long when it was supposed to be below 1000. Oh well, I hope you like regardless.  
> As always, tell me what you think in the comments below!

Bright sunlight filters through the curtains, spilling light into a sleeping boys eyes. Birds chirp sweetly, yet obnoxiously, awaking him from his slumber. The boy below him stirs as he stirs, glaring up at his friend with sleepy feline eyes.

Dave has taken up John's offer (demand) to get some rest from shifting during sleepovers. He usually hides under the covers, only poking his head out to make a snide remark. As Dave sits up, he shifts back into his human form. John sighs to himself, watching his friend. It's not much, but it's a start.

“What time is it?” John yawns, wiping sleep from his eyes.

“I dunno, ass o fucking clock in the morning. Too early to be up though.” Dave replies, intensifying his glare at John in the last bit.

John glances over the the alarm clock on his bedside table. In big, red numbers it flashes ‘8:00’. 

“Shit!” John jumps off the bed, almost falling onto Dave in his hurry to get up. “I have work in an hour!”

“You and your stupid job.” Dave rolls his eyes as John dashes out of his bedroom door and into the hallway. 

John got a casual job at the local magic shop a few months ago. It's only on weekends and only working the till but its been really good. Everyone's been really nice and he's only had to deal with a few shitty customers. He needs this job and he's not going to let a sleep-in take it from him. He knew he had work the next day so why did he stay up late with Dave? God, sleepovers with Dave always make him stay up late. He knows this.

“Dad!” John calls, thumping down the hallway. “I gotta go to work!”

Dad peeks out of the kitchen just in time to see his son hurtling towards him like an out of control car spinning off the road. “Whoa John!” He chuckles, putting his hand on his son's shoulders. “Slow down.”

“I can't!” John slips out of his fathers grasp to enter the kitchen, hurrying to prepare himself some semblance of a breakfast. “I have work in an hour!”

“That's plenty of time.” Dad reassures him but John isn't having it.

“No it's not! I've got to have breakfast, have a shower, get dressed, do my hair and make food for my break!” John stresses, speaking at a million miles per hour.

“Don't stress about food. You just have a shower and I'll make you a sandwich and pack you a juice box.” Dad watches his son hurry around frantically.

John breathes a massive sigh of relief. “Thanks Dad.” He smiles widely, slowing down in his attempts to make breakfast. Just a piece of toast which, speak of the devil, pops up just as John turns to check on it. Spreading on margarine and jam, John shoves it in his mouth, moving back upstairs into his room to grab his clothes for a shower.

 

Dave looks up in annoyance when John enters his room, grunting in annoyance when John steps on his bed to access the closet. John grabs out his work clothes, fresh underwear and a binder, bundling them up in a ball to carry to the bathroom.

“Why do you have to rush around like this John?” Dave shakes his head in disapproval. 

“Because of my job! Which you made me late for, by the way!” John looks down at Dave, who has softened his glare.

“You and that job.” Dave tuts. “It's keeping us apart it is. And don't blame me for your own mistakes.”

“Well the job is important so I can have my own money Dave. You know damn well that I don't want to rely on my Dad's money my entire life. I know it's splitting apart our hang out schedule but I need this!” John tries to explain. It's kind of hard to explain to Dave, who doesn't really want a job and is insistent John doesn't need one either. But John needs money, because he feels bad about being such a financial burden on his Dad. He knows his Dad would get angry and upset with that kind of thinking, but it's the truth.

“Capitalism was a mistake.” Dave remarks, sitting up.

“You've been watching too many of Dirk’s videos.” John chuckles.

“No, I've been watching too much of the truth.” 

John laughs at Dave's indignant expression. Dave says dumb shit like this all the time, but John's gotten used to it. Dave wouldn't be Dave without the dumb rants and all the weird shit he says.

“Anyway I've got to have a shower.” John states once more, moving to leave the room. However Dave isn't having it. Dave lunges forward to grab one of John's ankles, nearly knocking him over.

“Dave!” John yelps, struggling to swat Dave's hand away. “Let go!”

“Never!” Dave laughs, clearly joking around with John. “I'll save you from the cruel and unjust work you must endure!”

“Why are you speaking like an old timey knight dude? And my work isn't unfair or unjust at all really. I get like, 12 bucks an hour.” John chuckles, finally managing to wrap his fingers around Dave's.

“Holy shit, 12 bucks?” Dave's grip lessens, allowing John to slip free.

“Yes 12 bucks, and I get time and a half on Sundays. Lecture me on capitalism and then get greedy at the amount I earn an hour even though it's minimum wage. Now let me have my shower!”

Dave retreats back under the covers, finally letting John have a shower. As John leaves the room, he double checks his clock. 8:15. Great. Now he has to have a quick shower.

 

Luckily for John, Jane hasn't decided to be a jerk and hog the bathroom like last time. Getting into the shower is pretty easy. He just turns on the taps, gets undressed and waits for the perfect temperature. Of course, John already knows how to take a fucking shower so the whole process is automatic and he soon finds himself under the warm water. Warm showers are the best. He sure wishes Dave didn't keep him back longer so he could have a longer shower.

Dave...John's job  _ is _ keeping them apart. Both John and Dave know this, but Dave seems to be the one to speak his mind. John's always admired that aspect of him. How Dave always speaks what's on his mind, even if it's the dumbest shit ever and no one's actually listening.

Sleepovers with Dave are always fun. They stay up past midnight playing video games or watching movies or just plain talking. Scratch just plain old sleepovers, everything with Dave is fun. In class together they're an unstoppable force of fun and chaos, every teacher's worst nightmare. 

John's face feels really hot, but the shower isn't up that high is it? John glances at himself in the reflective metal of the tap. Wait a minute...why is he blushing? It's not like he has a crush on Dave or anything.

John knows his best friend is very attractive. Dave's had a lot of girlfriends and even a secret boyfriend (that no one supposed to know about but John, Rose and Jade knew about anyway) in the past. John's always been a little jealous of Dave's looks. He knows Dave's human form is only an illusion, but John's dad always told him to see beyond the surface, into the personality. Besides, John's never cared about that shifter stuff. Is it...is it normal to find your best friend physically attractive? Does that mean he actually has a crush on Dave?

John sits down in the shower, frowning in concentration. He looks back through all their interactions over the past nine years. All normal best friend stuff until...hmmm, John can't pinpoint it exactly, but John started seeing Dave differently a few years back. With puberty Dave got more attractive, more confident (only on the outside) and John started to notice. At some point John got a crush on Dave and never realised it until now.

Oh great, what's he supposed to do now? 

It's not like Dave is into him or anything. Far from it probably. John isn't Dave's type at all. Besides, even on the off chance that Dave likes him like that, John is still John. Fat, very dense, awkward and incredibly, painstakingly normal. Dave is way too good for him. Dave is like...way out of John's league.

 

“Hey John do you want to keep your job or what? Because you've been in there for twenty minutes and you've gotta go soon.” A knock on the door is accompanied by Dave's voice, causing John to almost scream in panic.

“I-I'm coming!” John calls back, frantic hurrying from earlier returning. In one swift motion, he turns the tap off and emerges from the cubicle, wrapping his towel around him.

“Also I'm kinda jealous of your lunch. It looks really good.” Dave adds, incredibly unreasonably.

“Dave! I'm naked!” John continues drying himself off, a little more frantically now that Dave's decided to have a conversation with him.

“So? There's a door between us.” Dave replies, acting like that isn't totally embarrassing.

“Dave! Just let me get dressed in peace! I'll be out in a minute, we'll talk then. I promise I'll text you on my breaks.” John says, now somewhat dry. He slips on his boxers and begins to put on his binder, struggling a little with the clips on the back.

“Ugh fine!” Dave complains, footsteps indicating he's retreated down the stairs. John can tell he's dragging his feet on the floor and has thrown his head back in an over exaggerated way. John smiles a little at the thought, relieved to be finally left alone by Dave, not that that's really a bad thing.

 

A minute later, John emerges fresh and clean from the bathroom. He heads straight down to the kitchen, having already packed his bag for the long, tedious eight hours ahead.

Dave and Dad are chatting about whatever, but both turn to look at John as he enters the room. 

“Feeling squeaky clean John?” Dave smirks.

“Hey sweetheart.” Dad greets John, smiling warmly. “I made you your lunch, a ham, cheese and lettuce sandwich. I also packed you in an apple popper and a small container of last night's leftovers.”Thank you so much Dad! You really didn't have to do that.” John beams at his father before looking at Dave. “Ew Dave, that wording is really weird.”

“Oh but I did. You're my son and I want you happy and well-fed.” Dad ruffles John's hair. Beside him, Dave pokes his tongue out at John, hiding it behind his hand. “I'll give you a lift there too-save you walking.”

“Dad you really don't have to do that!” John protests, waving his hands. “I need the exercise anyway!”

“Nonsense. I have to drive Dave home as well, might as well kill two birds with one stone. You boys got everything?”

“Sure do Mr E.” Dave picks up his school bag resting beside him, while John lifts up his own bag, now fully packed with lunch included.

“I told you not to call me that.” Dad sighs exasperatedly, shaking his head. Grabbing his car keys from the kitchen bench, he sets off towards the front door, obviously expecting the two boys to follow. 

“Jane!?” Dad calls up to the house, already halfway out the door. “I'm just dropping the boys back home and to work, I'll be back in 15!”

“Alright! See you Dad!” Comes the muffled reply.

John and Dave pile into the backseat of Dad's car. Neither of them call shotgun because, although it's the best seat in the car, they'd rather sit and talk.

 

“So…” Dave leans back on his seat once Dad's driven out of the driveway.

“So?” John looks back at him.

“I dunno man, it's hard coming up with conversations on the spot like this. Like it's the aftermath of yet another sleepover. I'm going home, you're going off to work like a big boy now. You're growing up man! Next you'll be telling me all about last week's budget and taxes and the stock market.” Dave throws his hands up in exasperation.

“Well last week we actually made $32, 000, great work team! We're up on the week by 0.5%!” John recounts statistics from work, keeping a completely straight poker face.

“Ah! Stop!” Dave half shouts, earning himself a stern fatherly glare from Dad. 

John just laughs, giggles growing louder and more uncontrollable each passing second. What Dave said wasn't even that funny, but because Dave was the one that said it, that by default makes it hilarious.

“Taxes!” John shouts through his giggles.

“Ahhh no! Stop! Taxes are my only weakness!” Dave has now joined in on the laughter. From the front, Dad smiles at all the laughter coming from the backseat.

John blows a massive raspberry at Dave, who makes a big fuss over it. Dave pulls the most offended, haughty face which only serves to heighten John's laughter.

“John! We're here.” Dad announces, sad to be interrupting their joyful conversation. They've pulled up in front of ‘Weird Al's Emporium of Wonders’, aka John's workplace. John's manager, Al, is already outside with several of John's coworkers. Obviously they're waiting for it to be actually be 9:00.

“Bye Dad! Thank you so much for the lunch and the lift!” To the best of his abilities in the cramped car, John gives his Dad a hug.

“Have a good day sweetheart.” Dad pats his sons back soothingly. 

“Bye Dave!” John punches Dave lightly on the shoulder. “I promise to text you during my break.”

“I'll have to trust your word.” Dave grins, punching John affectionately back on the arm.

John grabs his bag and hops out of the car, joining his co-workers on the pavement. He waves furiously at both people in the car, sending Dad his thanks once again.

As Dad drives away, Dave winds down the window and pokes his head out and shouts ‘Don't let the asshole customers get the best of you!’.

John blushes furiously under his co-workers curious stares. Dave can be really embarrassing sometimes! But a part of him is embarrassed for a good reason. Butterflies swirl in his stomach as he runs those words through his mind. Although not the nicest or most gently worded, they're still supportive and John is very flattered.

He really does have a crush on Dave. Fuck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, I based John's pay off of the Australian minimum wage for his age. For a fifteen year old, he's getting less than he should in AUD as well. I think the adult minimum wage is 17/18 AUD an hour.


	19. 15 Years Old. Pining.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave annoy the girls with their pining over each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> John: hey rose could you not tell anyone about this?  
> Rose, shoving her phone back in her pocket after deleting the half-written text to jade: sure
> 
> Like always, hope you enjoy! Tell me what you thought in the comments below!

Jade Harley’s room is pretty large, with large scenic windows overlooking her garden. Some of her garden is kept inside, pots on the windowsill and her desk. Her room is bright and colourful, the multicoloured flowers highlighting the happy atmosphere of the room. Like most stereotypical teenagers, the floor of Jade's room is covered in stuff, i.e. stuffed yarn toys from Rose, art supplies and various metal wires and scraps from her latest projects. Her current project (an attempt at making her own computer, she's going great thanks for asking) is laid out on her desk. 

In her friend group, Jade hands down has the best bedroom (besides John's treehouse of course) to hang out in. John's is too messy, Dave's is too small and no one likes his dad and Rose's is a bit scary, and she's very protective about it. Although mainly Rose hangs out with Jade in her room, sometimes John or Dave come over to Jade's house to hang out. Like now, with Dave over, stretched out on her floor in the process of making art and discussing John. John is at work, and clueless to Dave and Jade's conversation about him.

“Fuck Jade, I just...I really like him…” Dave sighs dramatically, leaning his cheek in his hands and staring up at his friend with overly sad eyes.

“Okay? Then just ask him out?” Jade replies, making a very reasonable point.

“What!? No! Jade all your lovey-doveying with Rose has clouded your love senses.” Dave looks absolutely outraged at her suggestion, rolling onto his side to glare at her for emphasis on his point.

“It's a very good idea Dave.” Jade frowns at her friends stubbornness.

“Um, no? Fuck man, John's way out of my league, I've got no chance.” Dave looks to the side sadly. “Besides, it's very unlikely that he'll actually like me back.”

“You don't know that.” Jade raises an eyebrow.

“Um, yes I do.” Dave turns back to his artwork, which just so happens to be a drawing of the person he's talking about.

“With your magical powers? Dave, you don't know until you try!” Jade is ever optimistic and all for encouraging her friends. 

“Jade.” Dave says pointedly. “I'm a fucking shifter-a mutant one at that. John deserves so much more than what I can give him. His friendship has given me so much in life and I don't want to ruin it over some stupid crush!”

“Dave, your feelings are not stupid! And do you really believe John is that shallow that he'd reject you just because you're a shifter?”

In a fit of annoyance at Jade's words, Dave lets his human form slip. He glares up at her in his true form, sprawled across her fluffy carpet. She gasps in shock (this is the first time she's seen him like this), and he lets out a feral grin. “Do you see what I mean now?”

“Dave…” She crouches down next to him, laying a soothing hand on his back. “John's not like that. You're his best friend in the whole world and he's never cared about all that shifter stuff. He's not so shallow as to base his assumptions off of looks. If you don't want to ask him out (which you should, just letting you know) in fear of him rejecting you and ruining your friendship, that's fine. But just know that it won't be because you're a mutant shifter. So I don't want to hear anymore self deprecation from you mister!”

Dave turns away, ashamed of his little outburst. He shifts back into his human form, sitting up. “I'm sorry…”

“That's okay, but just remember we all love you! That's what friendship is about. But take my advice Dave, if you don't want to straight up ask him out, be subtle!” Jade backs out of Dave's personal bubble a little, leaning back on her bed.

“Be subtle? But John is dense as a rock!” Dave scoffs loudly.

“Exactly!” Jade beams. “See, if you subtly flirt with him, compliment him and give him little gifts from time to time, by the time he notices you're in love with him, he'll be in love right back! It's foolproof!”

“I...I dunno Jade. I guess it could work?” Dave mumbles, thinking. John is pretty dense, so by the time he's noticed they'll probably be in their 90s or something. But...making John happy is always a good thing, so perhaps this plan could work after all?”

“Great! How about you start by giving him that drawing of him?” Jade suggests.

“I…” Dave looks down at the drawing. It's alright, he guesses. Not his best work, but it's better than the ironically bad Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff comics. He's nervous about giving away his art but...fuck it, John's worth it. He'll add some finishing touches and some glitter or something to perfect it. “I'll do it.”

“Great!” Jade chirps, scooping him up into a hug. “This'll work, I promise!”

Dave tries to smile, but he's a bundle of nerves. What has he gotten himself into?

 

☆☆☆

 

Rose's room is quite the dark contrast between Jade's room. Where Jade's room is very bright due to the large windows, Rose's room has the curtains drawn. Rose's shelves are covered in little knick knacks and figurines in relation to her obsession with eldritch abominations. She's named every one of them, and knitted little bits and bobs for their many appendages.

She is very protective over everything in her room, so her friends tend to tread carefully when visiting. Jade is the least cautious, as she's dating the girl. Dave is more careful than the others, the only one somewhat intimidated by the goth girl shtick. John is somewhat a mixture of the two. He's cautious of her stuff, but still makes himself comfortable without stepping past boundaries. He knows by now that Rose will let him do most things with her stuff if he lets her use him as a psycho analytical test subject, which he takes advantage of sometimes. Like now, sitting on her bed and discussing (or one-sided ranting) Dave. She owes him for wingmaning for her with Jade.

“He's just so great!” John gushes, collapsing down on Rose's bed. Beside him, Rose, who's reading a book, just hums her agreement. “Like I know he acts like a dumbass but he's super smart! Seriously Rose, he pretends to not pay attention in maths, but I've seen him work out complex maths stuff in seconds!” 

“Sure John.” Rose hums, usual uninterested demeanor hiding how interested she really is.

“And he's super supportive of like, everything I do. Like being trans? He straight up accepted me once I told him. Or being gay? He doesn't care! Joining the football team? ‘Sure John, just let me get out my slutty cheerleader outfit.’ He's done a lot for me…” John trails off, looking into Rose's expectant eyes sadly.

“What else?” Rose asks, shuffling a little closer.

“Well...Rose, do you promise not to tell anyone I said this?” John looks away a little shyly.

“Of course I won't tell anyone. I will keep this conversation between the two of us.” Rose sets down her book and turns her full attention to John.

“Well...secretly? I think Dave's pretty cool.” John admits. Rose leans closer, beckoning for more. “That whole cool ironic act kind of doubles the attraction, like y’know, makes him kinda hotter? Like it's dumb, but there's definitely something to it. His shades are dumb, but they add a sense of aloofness to him. But the best thing about it is when he drops the ‘cool guy’ act around me...it makes me feel so special and trusted.”

“Well trust, support and respect are all sturdy support beams for a good and healthy relationship.” Rose hums, nodding along with her words.

“Relationship!” John squeaks, shooting up. “L-like romantic!?”

“Yes. That is what you want from him, right?” Rose raises an eyebrow at his shocked expression.

John turns away, face red as a tomato. He's quiet, until a quiet reply. “Yes but...I don't want to ruin our friendship.”

“How will it ruin your friendship?” Rose asks, opening the way to more discussion.

“Well, what we've built is special together. We trust each other, and I've finally gotten him to open up about shifter stuff. After nine years Rose. Nine years! I don't want to ruin it and break that trust because I have the hots for him.” John reasons.

“Why don't you try subtle flirting with him, to see if he's interested. If he is, ask him out, if he's not, leave it and I'll be here with tissues if you need me.”

John smiles back at his friend. “Thanks for the advice Rose, but I'm not doing that. I don't think I'll make a move.”

“That's fine then. If you need to talk, I'm always there.” Rose replies, reaching out a comforting hand on his arm. 

“Thanks Rose.” John smiles wider, ever glad to have a friend like Rose.

He's got it bad for Dave, but at least he doesn't have to wallow in his feelings alone. Although, knowing Rose, he'd probably prefer to. He could take Rose's advice, but he'd rather not. He's not subtle at all, and Dave will probably pick up on it. Dave's probably already picked up on John's crush on him. That thought is absolutely mortifying.

 

☆☆☆

 

“Hey John, wait up!” Dave's voice calls out down the corridor. John spins around, halting in his tracks to wait for his friend to catch up. Dave's clutching something in his hands, a little puffed out and out of breath.

“What's up Dave?” John asks, smiling placidly. Dave looks like he's going to rant about something for a while, so John prepares himself.

“I have a present for you.” Dave says, holding out the package for John to take.

“Oh, thanks.” A little confused but pleasantly surprised, John takes it, unwrapping it to find a picture of himself. He feels his face heating up. It's obviously one of Dave's drawings and it's absolutely beautiful. The way Dave drew John makes him look like absolutely stunning, not like real life at all. Picture-him is beaming at the viewer, eyes bright and incredibly blue. Freckles spot his cheeks, which highlight his beauty instead of ruin it like in real life. Glitter swirls around in the background, making it look like a gay Vincent Van Gogh painting. It's absolutely beautiful and the fact that Dave drew it for him makes it all the more special.

Dave is waiting expectantly for a response, with what looks like a nervous expression. Which is a strange thing on someone as stoic as Dave's face.

“I love it!” John gushes, which immediately makes Dave perk up. “You're so good at drawing! Like, this is amazing Dave! I'm being totally serious, you have talent.”

“Thanks John.” Dave gives John a small, rare smile. It makes such a difference on his face and John is completely in awe of that smile.

“No need to thank me, I should be thanking you! This is beautiful!” John leans forward and wraps Dave up in a big hug.

“I uh…” Dave stutters out. Part of Jade's plan involves him being suave and smooth, but the feeling of being wrapped in John's arms and all his compliments crumble that persona right away.

“Why'd you draw me anyway?” John asks, breaking away from the hug.

“I had an art block.” Dave uses as an excuse. “And you inspired me right out of it.”

The look on John's face is worth everything to Dave. That sounds sappy and gay but it's true. John's smile reminds him that despite his reservations about giving him the picture, it was the good thing to do. John is a good friend, if only they could be...

“Let's go to the cafeteria. I'm in the mood for some of your dad's sandwiches.” Dave changes the subject to derail  _ that _ train of thought. John is the perfect best friend, stop that.

“Dad just made ham, cheese and lettuce sandwiches dude, I don't know why you're so excited.” John shrugs, resuming his walk to the cafeteria, Dave's drawing clenched tightly in his hands. Dave follows him, letting John lead him towards the cafeteria despite knowing the way already.

“Dude, it's your dad's sandwiches.”

“Exactly! I don't know why you're so excited about lettuce, but I'm not.” John snorts, shaking his head.

The two boys walk off into the cafeteria to meet up with Jade and Rose and eat their sandwiches together. Neither of them want to dwell on their relationship right now, especially when they're standing right next to each other.

 

Later however, John will hang up Dave's drawing of him right next to it and marvel at it for years to come. In the future (not that either of them know this), John will still love the picture, and Dave will look at it with shame and embarrassment. It's a gift from the one he loves, an incredibly beautiful and thoughtful gift at that, of  _ course _ John will treasure it forever.

Dave will lie in bed listening to Dirk murmuring in his sleep below, clinging to the thought of John's smile at receiving his drawing as tightly as he clings to his human form. He's a little embarrassed of the gift now, and despite John's pleasure in receiving the gift, Dave wonders if he should have done it. Jade cheered him on, but Dave isn't too sure. But through all this conflict, at least John's happy. Because to Dave, that's all that matters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> John, 80 years old and still looking at Dave's drawing: this is nice  
> Dave, looking at him with 'dead inside' eyes: please stop embarrassing me


	20. 16 Years Old. Study Group.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A study group in the library turns into a discussion about the Winter Ball. John gets an idea.

Ah, school libraries, home to the seniors, nerds and friendless. It isn't a rare occasion that study groups come in, prepared to study together but really chat about school life.

John, Rose, Dave and Jade are all in a study group together, despite taking mostly different classes and wanting to go completely different paths in life. John wants to be a doctor, to make his dad proud(er) and to help people. Rose wants to be an author...or a psychiatrist...or something, she's not too sure yet. Dave wants to be an artist/filmmaker, mainly to do with the fact he can make whatever he wants and call it art. Jade wants to be an astrophysicist, interested in all types of science.

The four are seated around a circular table, surrounded with their respective notes and homework. Dave is more focused on talking than study, seemingly hellbent on distracting John from his biology textbook. This includes kicking John under the table, which only earns him a glare. Rose and Jade are in very close proximity to each other, holding hands under the table while reading their respective textbooks. 

Dave, finally seeing John is actually seriously studying and not going to budge, turns his attention to Rose and Jade.

“So you two going to the Winter Ball or what?” He asks. Dave is of course, talking about the winter themed dance being held in a months time. It's a pretty big event, and generally couples attend it together. This years theme is “Snowflakes and Ice Cubes.” not that Dave's paying attention to that or anything.

“Why yes, we have plans to.” Rose replies, sharing a look with Jade.

“Haha and I'm guessing you booked a hotel for after, right?” Dave laughs. His joke earns him a glare from Rose, and a kick from Jade.

“It just so happens I do have a hotel room booked, but it also just happens that this is none of your business.” Rose snaps. Dave opens his mouth to make yet another joke, but Rose's death glare silences. “The Winter Ball is a big event for us, and I won't let you ruin it with your immaturity.”

“Rose, doth thee woundeth me.” Dave places a hand on his chest and gestures over dramatically.

“Shut it Strider.” Rose glowers in reply.

“Anyway!” Jade, ever the pacifist, steps in of sorts between the Strider-Lalonde stand off by changing the subject slightly. “Dave, you planning on asking anyone?” Jade's eyes flick to John, still busy with his schoolwork. Dave manages to keep his major freak out on the inside.

“Hah. No. I'll let the ladies come to me.” Dave says, panic dying down only slightly seeing as John hasn't reacted. “They simply  _ can't _ resist my charms. I'll get a ton of offers to go out to the dance but I'll wait until the one person who asks me to the dance in the perfect way.”

“I never pegged you as such a romantic Dave. But what would be the perfect proposal for you?” Rose asks for John's sake. She can see the way he's attentively listening to the conversation, and trying to hide it.

“Really Rose? Right in front of your girlfriend? I thought you were better than this.” Dave shakes his head in mock shame. 

Rose sneers in annoyance. “Maybe I was wrong and that speak was code for how you're spending the day alone watching movie in your underwear.”

“Alright fine, Jesus Rose!” Dave snorts, rolling his eyes. He pushes his shades further up his nose in an effort to lessen the impression of him being a pussy. “I dunno, I think there'll be flowers and chocolate, but it's a big spectacle that ends with the person sobbing on their knees for me, begging me to go with them.”

“That's a bit over the top.” Rose raises an eyebrow. “It starts out with romantic things and ends with a weird display of power which could suggest a strange and unusual fetish of some kind.” 

“Fuck off Rose.” Dave says simply, before turning his head to the side. “Okay maybe I was lying about the begging for my love and going to the dance with them. I just….I want it to be genuine. But also romantic and showy. Very showy.”

 

Rose's phone dings in her pocket with a text alert. She pulls it out, turning it on to check who it's from. It's from John, with what appears to be a groupchat with her, Jade and John. The message from John reads:

_ ‘ok so i have an idea. but i'm going to need your help. rose probably already knows what it's about, so i’m going to clue jade in on it. i have a crush on dave and i want to ask him to the winter ball but i need you help.’ _

Jade's reply is pretty much instantaneous and she spams the chat with an array of messages.

_ ‘holy moly!!!!!’ _

_ ‘you have a crush on dave???’ _

_ ‘:o!!!!!’ _

_ ‘he has a crush on you too!’ _

_ ':)!!!!' _

From across the table, John blushes absolutely furiously, looking at Dave with wide eyes.

Rose shoots her girlfriend a look that says ‘why didn't you tell me Dave had a crush on John?’. Jade simply sends Rose back a look that says ‘why didn't you tell me John had a crush on Dave?’

Touchė Jade.

Rose replies to the group chat, smug grin on her face.  _ ‘That's great for you John! Now, what's your plan?’ _

_ ‘yeah! i wanna hear it!’ _ Jade replies as well.

“I feel like I'm missing something here.” Dave grumbles, looking around the group only to get promptly ignored. "This generation and their fucking phones amirite?"

Rose sends a black-lipsticked smirk over John's way. She's so glad that finally a plan is being set into motion. She's proud of John for finally stirring up the courage to ask Dave out.

_ ‘well, here's the plan…’ _ John replies on the groupchat.

This is going to be interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Johndave sort of next chapter! But it is coming very soon don't worry like in chapter 22 kinda thing  
> Anyway I hoped you enjoyed and please remember to leave your thoughts in the comments! 8)


	21. 16 Years Old. Propositions.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John puts his plan into action, with behind the scenes action from Rose and Jade (they contributed a lot actually). Dave gets the completely wrong end of the stick.

The hallways of the school are busy with the hustle and bustle of students hurrying to their next class. Dave Strider, unlike everyone else, is in no rush to get to his next class. He's got Ancient History next, which usually he'd love, but they have a really shitty substitute at the moment so really he can't be bothered.

Nevertheless he has to go, so he casually grabs his Ancient book and textbook out of his locker. As he goes to close his locker, his eyes pause on the various photographs he's stuck to the door. They are mainly photographs of him and John taking sweet selfies together. He has also taken the liberty of printing out some of John's double chin snapchat selfies and sticking them on the locker door with sticky tape. There's also a few (purposely) blurry shots of Dirk and Rose, as well as a really nice one of Jade. Ah, the beautiful pictures of friendship.

A tap on Dave's shoulder snaps him back to reality. 

“Hi Dave!” It's John, holding a bouquet of flowers out to Dave with a nervous smile on his face. 

“Oh hi John. What's this all about?” Dave struggles to keep the blush off his face, but to no avail. Calm down Dave, they're not for you, so get your head out of your ass!

“Well, I wanted to ask you something…” John, still nervous, blushes as he shoots Dave a signature grin.

“Yeah?” Dave braces himself for the inevitable ‘do these flowers look nice enough to give to my mysterious crush who I refuse to tell you the identity of’ but it never comes. 

Instead, John drops to his knees and holds out the bouquet of flowers. “Dave Strider, will you do me the honour of accompanying me to the Winter Ball?””

Dave's heart soars in his chest, and he subtly has to pinch himself to check if this is real. It is but...it doesn't feel like it. Yeah, he likes John but he was never expecting this to happen.

By now, the boys have gathered a crowd around them. All those nosey people who only know John and Dave by face and not name. Even a teacher has stopped to watch, one that neither John or Dave really know.

“What.” Dave says, too shellshocked to reply properly. There is no way this can be real. It's gotta be one of John's pranks.

“Will you go with me to the Winter Ball?” John repeats his question. He's looking a little nervously at the crowd and suddenly it becomes all clear to Dave.

This is all a prank. But not on Dave, on the school. The school administration doesn't exactly like John, for both the numerous pranks he pulls and his transness. Despite John's legal name change, they still insist on dead naming him. Dave can see why he's pulling this prank and honestly if he were in John's shoes he'd do the same thing. Dave just wishes he was clued in on it beforehand.

Dave is pretty sure he knows the exact details of the prank, seeing as he knows John very well. Basically, John fake-asks Dave out, which puts the school administration in a pickle. They're pretty homophobic (a fact that Rose and Jade know all too well), so having another same sex couple at the dance will piss them right off. But they can't say anything against it unless they admit their transphobia and finally see John as a male. Dave is all for fucking with the school board, but he wishes John had notified him beforehand. All this sappy fake asking him out is breaking his heart.

“I...yes, I'll go with you to the Winter Ball.” Dave gives John a smile, despite the protests and aching of his heart.

John immediately shoots up and tackles Dave into a hug. Dave is overwhelmed by the hug, even more so than all of John's other hugs. John is laughing in what sounds like relief, digging his face into Dave's chest. The crowd ‘awwws’, but Dave notices the glares of a few.

So he'll play along with the prank. But it seems like John wants to keep it hush hush, so he won't question it. John is the prank master after all. Dave clings to John's body, ignoring the ache of his heart. The Winter Ball will probably be the best night of his life, but also the worst…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Johndave next chapter! Yay! So stay tuned for that one, and in the meantime why don't you leave some reviews in the comments because I'd love some feedback of which I've been getting next to none. Come on people, 2018 is the year of good vibes!


	22. 16 Years Old. Winter Ball.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a fun, cool school dance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All my knowledge of school dances come from American TV and my own Australian school socials. So if it's innacurate, whatever. It physically pains me to write 'mom' and 'soda' to create that authentication so whatever.  
> Anyway I hope you enjoy! This ones sweet and sad. Please tell me what you thought in the comments below.  
> Also there's some mild homophobia in here (the use of the f word) so just be careful of that.

The hall, fully decked out in all the snowy, wintery glory of the Winter Ball is absolutely beautiful. White fabric hangs from the ceiling, blowing gently and completely transforming the hall. Beside the fabric is glittery silver snowflakes and white helium balloons stuck on the ceiling. The whole room is filled with people in white and blue clothes dancing and having a good time. A smoke machine set up on the stage washes the place with a hazy, wintery glow.

But, Dave thinks the most beautiful thing (person in this case) in the room is John. He's fully decked out in a beautiful white suit, with a blue dress shirt underneath and a glittery silver bowtie. His hair is somewhat neat for once, styled not-so-effortlessly in short curls. His arm is linked in Dave's and as they enter the hall together he smiles so widely and beautifully it makes Dave's heart stop. Pity that it isn't real.

Dad's already took tons of photos, which is why they're kind of late. Dave thinks that the photography was overboard for a prank, but stays silent on the matter. He guesses it adds an element of realness to the prank-no matter what, John’s dad is always proud of his son. Of both of his kids. 

As Dave stares at the people dancing around the hall, he has to admit it felt really nice to be holding onto John as their photographs were taken.

 

“Dave!” John tugs on his arm, gesturing towards the dance floor. “C’mon, we gotta have a dance!”

Dave lets John drag him out onto the dancefloor. A slow, waltzy type song is playing and everyone is dancing accordingly. Dave usually isn't one for dancing, but he makes an exception this time seeing as John seems very determined to dance. The stupid school dance program means Dave knows how what positions to take in a slow dance, and how to do it, but he lets John take the lead anyway.

John curls his left hand around Dave's right hand and places his own right hand on Dave's waist. The music washes over them and for Dave, everything else begins to fade. John becomes his sole focus as they twirl around on the dance floor.

“This is nice, right?” John asks, looking earnestly up at Dave.

“Oh, yeah. Heaps nice. Through the turned down lights and the hazy smoke machine I can't see how shitty the decorations actually are.” Dave laughs, and John cracks a smile.

“Yeah, it's not the best of the school dances, but it's still nice right?”  John repeats himself slightly.

“Yeah, but at some point in the night, hopefully soon, I hope to check out how nice the buffet table is.” Dave's eyes drift from John to the buffet table. It's laden with all sorts of drinks and snacks and Dave is willing to try it all.

“I bet it can't compare to my dad's cooking…” John huffs sulkily.

“Yeah, your dads cooking is the bomb.com, but all food is good. And come on John, it's there to eat and we've gotta gorge ourselves on the buffet. Like seriously I want to try everything on that table.” Dave drools a bit at the thought. Luckily John doesn't notice.

John laughs, looking up at Dave with earnest eyes. “After this song we’ll raid the buffet table, I promise. I just like dancing with you.”

“All I'm reminded of is that stupid dance class.” Dave scowls, hoping John doesn't see his blush in the dark lighting.

“Oh please don't remind me.” John groans, throwing his head back. “That sucked big time. All the girls hands were really powdery from their makeup!”

“It was like fifty shades of brown on my hands afterwards.” Dave jokes, sharing John's distaste.

“Ew! Please don't compare it to that!” John laughs, nudging Dave's chest playfully. “And the whole brown thing makes it so much worse.”

”John stop kinkshaming people.” Dave snickers, smiling. “Those poor white moms are so hurt right now.”

“Oh pssssh.” John blows a raspberry. “I don't care about them.”

“Oh, what a rebel.” Dave bats his eyelids, not that John can see it. “John vs the Suburban White Moms of America. Who will win?”

“Me, obviously.” John states this as a true fact.

“What, you against  _ all _ of the white moms in America? With their minivans and six kids and everything?” Dave raises an eyebrow.

“Hmmmm. Maybe not all of them.” John thinks about this for a while, as if it needs serious consideration. With this statement, Dave shrugs and both boys focus on the dance once more.

As the two have been dancing, they've both been to absorbed in each other to notice the song has changed. Several times, judging by the clock on the wall. Oh well, they had a good time. Dave of course (always thinking of his stomach), reminds John of his promise to raid the buffet table.

 

“Alright, let's go.” John sighs, untangling from Dave but still grabs his hand, leafing Dave towards the buffet table.

Once they get closer, Dave realises the table isn't as grand as he first thought, but instead kind of shitty. It's still laden with food, just not the best kind of food. It's the cheap stuff. Regardless, Dave is still determined to eat everything on the table.

It seems to be set into segments; cupcakes, sandwiches, fruit, fried food, deserts and other somewhat delicious looking foodstuffs line the table in segments. At the far end of the table is the drinks station, with hot water, juices, coffee and tea bags, sugar and milk. That area is where Dave decides to start. He makes a cup of coffee for himself  (it's going to be a long and heartbreaking night after all) and a tea for John (milk, two sugars, just the way he likes it). John stands next to him as he makes it, a little curious but still readily accepting the cup when it's handed to him.

“Thanks Dave.” John smiles, taking a sip of the tea. “Pity there's no soda. What highschooler drinks tea and coffee?”

“Soda is very unhealthy John. Besides, you're drinking tea right now, I'm drinking coffee and I'm pretty sure Rose bathes herself in coffee.” Dave states.

“You're right.” John muses, turning his attention towards the rest of the buffet table. ”What do you want to try first?” 

“Those finger sandwiches? They look really good.”

“Alright! We'll start there!” John leads Dave towards the sandwich section.

They're all on white bread, cut into small triangles with toothpicks holding them together. Dave picks up one with egg and lettuce and takes a bite out of it.

“Whooo. That is...something…”

John laughs at the face Dave makes. “That bad?”

Instead of replying, Dave picks up another egg and lettuce sandwich and holds it out to John. A little wary, John takes it and takes a bite. Dave's grossed out face made John think it would be terrible, but it's really not.

“This is pretty good, why are you complaining about it?” John asks to which Dave simply shrugs.

“I'm not saying it's bad but it is a weird combo.”

“You've had this combo before, Dad's made it plenty of times.” John finishes off his sandwich and goes for another one, this time a ham and cheese one.

“I dunno. I think you were right and your dad is a better chef than the school food.” Dave dejectedly puts down the egg and lettuce sandwich and goes for a ham and cheese one as well. 

There's only really those two combinations to choose from. There are others, but they're all hastily constructed and they don't look too appealing. After trying enough, the boys decide on moving on to the next segment. Cupcakes and other baked goods.

“Ohhhh Dave look! They're decorated with little snowflakes!” John coos, picking up a blue frosted cupcake decorated with a white icing snowflake. 

“Those are pretty cute.” Dave agrees, picking up one for himself.

Together, they take a bite of their cupcakes. Only for John to spit his out again.

“Ah! Fucking packet mix!”

“How can you even tell?” Dave laughs at John's spluttering face, which in turn glares up at him.

“It smells weird and tastes gross.”

“You smell weird. And if you're not going to eat that, I will.” Dave says. John rolls his eyes and hands Dave the cupcake. Dave devours it in one bite, getting blue frosting on his nose.

“You've got blue frosting on your nose.” John points out. Dave simply wipes it off his nose with a finger and pops it in his mouth. John wrinkles his nose up in disgust.

“Anyway, I'm definitely trying every single cupcake on this table. And then all of the deserts.” Dave announces, grabbing a chocolate cupcake decorated with silver glitter.

“Well while you do that, I'm trying out the fried food. Because I don't want that packet mix in my mouth.” John shuffles towards the fried food segment, grabbing a fried chicken leg.

“Well you're missing the fuck out John.” Dave finishes off the chocolate cupcake and a vanilla one before John takes a few bites of his chicken leg.

“I'm really not.” John sniffs, turning back to the fried food section. This time, he tries some chicken nuggets.

The two drift into silence. John isn't too determined to devour the entire table like Dave is, so he quickly finishes with the fried food and moves onto the bowls of party snacks and lollies. Dave finishes with the cupcakes and other various baked goods in record time and moves onto the fried food. He nearly devours the entire bowl of chicken nuggets before realising there is other stuff in that segment. But apart from the chicken nuggets, there's nothing much else to eat in that section that's that different seeing it's all pretty much grease and oil. He's got enough of that at home. So he joins John at the lolly section.

“Hey Dave, check this out.” John greets, grabbing a tiny raspberry jelly and throwing it up in the air, leaning forward to catch it in his mouth. “Cool right?”

“That's nothing. Watch this.” Dave grabs three miscellaneous lollies and chucks them in the air. He manages to catch two out of the three in his mouth, but the third falls down to hit him on the face.

“Wow Dave truly amazing.” John says sarcastically, watching the lolly snake fall the the floor with an amused expression.

“Hey I got in a lolly more than you so I'm still technically beating you.” Dave sasses.

“Yeah but my tally of lollies on the ground is zero, and yours is one, so I beat you in that respect.” John sasses back.

“I didn't realise this was a competition and that you made up all the rules.” Dave replies, raising an eyebrow at John.

“I'm not making up the rules!” John protests. “I'm stating facts.”

“I'm stating facts too. Like you're a pussy.”

John opens his mouth to object, but is interrupted by the appearance of Rose and Jade. They look absolutely stunning together, the white and blues of their dresses making them look like the best couple in the hall. Both the girls hair is adorned in flowers; tucked into Rose's hair band and threaded through Jade's plait.

“Boys, what are you doing? You've been at the buffet table for an hour, shouldn't you be dancing?” Rose huffs, hands on hips. 

“Shouldn't you be minding your own business Lalonde?” Dave fires back.

“I'm just saying, no need to get angry.” Rose huffs again, offended. Jade places a comforting hand on her girlfriends shoulder.

“You guys having fun?” She asks.

“Yeah!” John replies for Dave. “We're scoping out the buffet table at the moment.”

Jade leans over and pops a strawberries and cream lolly in her mouth. She looks up and down the table while chewing. “It's okay but I don't see how you could spend an hour here.”

“Dave has a mission to sample every single thing on the table.” John grins, wrapping an arm around Dave's back and pulling him close. Dave stumbles a little in shock. He wasn't expecting that, but he's not complaining.

“I'd recommend the cupcakes and the chicken nuggets.” Dave suggests. Jade heeds his advice and immediately goes for a cupcake while Rose hangs back, looking at Dave with untrusting eyes.

“But isn't the point of the Winter Ball to hang out and dance and not eat the entire buffet?” Rose questions them.

“Eating food is very fun.” Dave replies.

“But Rose is right, we're probably supposed to be dancing. Come on Dave, let's go!” John waves a thanks to Rose, leading Dave back onto the dance floor.

 

Apparently it's been an hour, and the music is still slow, romantic waltzes. The entire floor is covered in couples all dolled up for the big dance, completely immersed in each other. Dave is a little embarrassed to join them.

“You and your dancing.” Dave tuts, secretly enjoying the sensation of being wrapped in John's arms.

“It's school tradition. Also Rose was probably going to keep bugging us about it and although she's my best friend, I'd rather spend the night alone with you.” John beams up and Dave and not for the first time this night, Dave's heart stops. Dave has no idea what to say in response to that.

All of a sudden, another couple rams into John, bumping him into Dave quite forcefully. Dave steadies John, glaring at the couple.

“Watch it, faggots.” The guy snaps, while his girlfriend snickers and they waltz off together. Dave almost goes for them, but the feeling of John smushed against his chest stops him.

Then Dave is snapped back to reality. This is the real reason he's dancing with John, not because John likes him or anything. This is because John wants to get back at all the homophobic assholes in this place. Dave had forgotten that in the time they'd spent together. He'd had so much fun, he'd forgotten the real reason he was here. He won't forget again.

“Are you okay?” He asks John, holding him tightly.

“Yeah...I just…” John looks away, furiously rubbing at his eyes. “Sorry I...I'm okay.”

“You sure? Because you look like you're ready to cry.” Dave lays a comforting hand on his friends arm, rubbing it slightly.

“I-I said I'm fine!” John snaps back.

Dave, clearly sensing that John's not going to tell him no matter how much he asks, changes the conversation so John will at least feel a little better. “All these people around us, they think they're going to be in love forever but it's high school. Who do you think is going to break up in an explosive way?”

“That's an oddly specific question.” John smiles once more, relieved for the subject change. “But I'd say probably Andrew MacArthur and Lilly Hudson. They seem like a disaster waiting to happen.”

“Good choice, but I'd have to say Ashley Greene and Jack Johnson.” This was the couple that had just rammed John. They're pretty popular within the school, no doubt they'll win the best couple award at the end of the night. “They act like their relationship is above everyone else's, but in reality, they're both cheating on each other.”

“Really? Where did you hear that and who are they cheating on?” John glances over at the couple, who seem to be caught up in a quiet argument.

“John, the real question here is who aren't they cheating on.” Dave smirks, looking in the same direction John does. “And also, this is common knowledge.”

“Well not to me!” John blushes in embarrassment.

“Sorry, I forgot you weren't as invested in the school rumour mills as Rose and I are.” Dave snorts.

“Yeah because I have to study to be a doctor! Dad's counting on me. I have to focus on my studies, so I can be a doctor.” John huffs. Dave is a little concerned about the pressure that Dad may be putting on John to succeed (Asian stereotypes and all that), but John has assured him multiple times that he does want to be a doctor. To help the sick and needy. 

“I'm sure you'll do well.” Dave reassures him.

“Thanks. When you're as stupid as I-” John is cut off from what he was about to say by a sudden change in song. It appears they've finally exhausted the slow, romantic songs and now it's onto the fun, modern songs.

 

“Oh sweet!” Dave cries, breaking away from John to start dancing for real. John watches on in amusement. Soon John is joined by Rose and Jade, who stare down at him in disappointment and amusement respectively. Dave beckons for them to join him. 

John immediately joins, grabbing both of Dave's hands and twirling around with him. Dave is a little shaken, but noticing the attention they're getting he squeezes John's hands and continues. Fuck those homophobic assholes.

Jade runs in to join next, picking up the long skirt of her dress as she twirls around. She beckons to her girlfriend only to be met with a stern look and crossed arms. Eventually she gives up and grabs her hand, twirling her around like John and Dave are doing.

And so the dance continues. At some point much later in the night, John and Dave return to the buffet table to finish what they started. They start a fun game of throwing grapes into each others mouths, laughing at each grape that is dropped onto the floor. 

Then, finally, tired of dancing, and of food, they sit to the side of the hall and watch others dance for the rest of the night. John clutches Dave's hand for the remainder of the night, all while Dave wages an internal battle within his mind. The two watch the awards ceremony. Unsurprisingly, Ashley Greene and Jack Johnson win the best couple award and become the ice king and queen or whatever. Neither John or Dave care.

And then, all too soon, the Winter Ball is over. The main hall lights turn back on and the school principal bids everyone goodbye. Dave feels the hole in his chest widen into a deep cavern. His night with John is over.

 

John, oblivious to Dave's internal struggle, leads him out of the hall and into the school car park. While they were inside, it had begun to snow. It surrounds them in watery patches, but the snow still swirls around them in the frosty air. John promptly leads them back inside, into the warm hall foyer. It's too cold outside to wait for dad. Everyone is spilling out of the hall, heading down to the car park. John waves to Rose and Jade as they pass by, each calling out their goodbyes.

John is still clinging to Dave's hand. In his other hand is his phone, open on a text conversation between John and Dad.

“My dad will be here to pick us both up in ten minutes. And I just want to say I...had a really good time with you tonight. I want to do it again sometime.” John smiles at Dave, who only grunts a reply. “I do! Honest. I had a great time. I loved dancing with you and hanging at the buffet.”

Dave still doesn't reply, a storm in his eyes. John falters for a second. By now, the crowds have thinned, leaving John and Dave alone in the foyer. The teachers are all in the hall or going home with the rest of their students.

“I was thinking we could see a movie together?” John tries again. “There's this one that looks really good, I'll pay for it, don't worry. If not a movie, maybe a dinner?”

“You can stop pretending now.” Dave says, voice hard and avoiding John's gaze.

John whips around, staring at Dave frantically. “What did you say?”

“I said, you can stop pretending now.” Dave repeats, voice still as steely. He untangles his hand from Johns, shoving it in his lap.

“Dave...what are you talking about?” John's expression is hurt and he tries to shuffle closer.

“You know damn well what I'm talking about.” Dave snaps. “The prank you're pulling.”

“What prank? Dave look at me,  _ please _ . What prank?” John urges grabbing Dave's hand again, only for him to rip it away again.

“Don't play dumb. The one against the homophobic and transphobic assholes in the school administration where you use me as a date to the dance to force them to see you as a boy and admit their homophobia and transphobia.” Dave looks away, curling his hands into fists.

“Dave...what? That sounds really complicated and pointless. Look, it's not a prank okay? I would never do that to anyone. I honestly, genuinely like you alright? Trust me.” John stares at Dave helplessly.

“Really?” Dave snorts, raising an eyebrow. “What's so great about me then?”

“Well you're amazing! You're super smart even though you hide it. You've always been really supportive of me and you've helped me with a lot. Seriously, you're a really good friend and I'm lucky to have you. And you're even pretty cool, despite what I often say otherwise. I'm utterly, truthfully in love with you, swear on my life.” John says without hesitation. During John's speech Dave has slowly turned to face John, eyes wide and blush heavy on his cheeks. Now he feels like a complete and utter idiot. “I've been told you like me too but if not, I'm really sorry.”

“No, don't be.” Dave murmurs, moving his hand forward to grab John's. He entangles their fingers, giving John a small smile. “I like you too. I think I always have in some shape or form. I've known that I love you for the past few years. I'm so lucky to have you too.”

John smiles in utter relief, rubbing Dave's hand with his own before pausing. “I'm sorry I made you feel I was playing a prank on you. That wasn't my intention. I think we should maybe do a redo? Like see a movie or something.”

“You just really want to see a movie don't you?” Dave chuckles.

“A bit? But mainly I want to see one with you. And make up for the confusion.”

“Really John you don't have to. It was my bad.” Dave waves his hands in front of his face in an effort to dispel John's thought process.

“No. I want to.” John looks at Dave utterly serious before cracking a smile. “Besides, it'll be like a date!” 

“Alright, fine.” Dave smiles to himself.

The conversation trails off, and the two sit in a relatively peaceful silence. Until John spins around and suddenly asks Dave a question.

“Dave, can I kiss you?”

Dave freezes, face now even redder than the ripest tomato. “I….uh...I...yes. If you want to.”

With a smile, John leans forward and plants a kiss on Dave's lips. He's clearly inexperienced, but the kiss is sweet and chaste. Their glasses bump together with a soft ‘clink’. John's lips are a little chapped, and Dave's breath kind of smells after all the food from the buffet table, but neither boy minds much. Dave almost can't believe this is happening, but he knows it's reality. That thought makes his heart swell in his chest, and when they part, he hums a little in contentment.

“Wow...I...wow…” Dave whispers, staring at John with wide eyes. “That was amazing.”

John blushes under the scrutiny, tucking a tuft of hair beneath his ear. Dave shuffles closer, so that their thighs are touching and their hands are resting on top of them.

“But…” Dave freezes, suddenly remembering something. “What about me being a shifter?”

“What?” John frowns in confusion. “Why does that matter?”

“B-because I...You've seen me John. You know what I'm talking about.” Dave snorts, gaze darkening. John's eyes scrunch up in pity and he brings Dave in for a hug.

“When I said I loved you, I mean all of you. I know that sounds dumb considering our conversation about high school love. But I've never cared about you being a shifter. I like you because you're funny, smart and my best friend.” John squeezes his hand tightly, reassuringly. 

Dave looks down at their conjoined hands. “Are you sure?”

“Of course I am. But I could ask the same of you.” John smiles widely, yet softly.

“Then…” Dave pauses. “I want to be in a relationship with you.”

“You took the words right out of my mouth!” John laughs, beaming wide.

 

The boys slip back into silence, leaning into each others bodies. It's comfortable and sweet, with each boy musing on what just happened. It's definitely one of the good things. After years of pining, they're finally together.

From the car park, a car horn sounds. It's John's Dad, finally here to pick up the boys. 

“Jeez, has it been ten minutes already?” John says, more to himself than Dave. John gets up, letting go of Dave's hand to stretch. Dave rises beside him, wordlessly following as John takes his hand and once more leads him to the car park. He can walk himself, but the feeling of John's hand in his own is so nice.

Dad's car is waiting for them in front of the steps. Snow is still swirling down, bringing with it a chill that makes the boys hurry towards Dad's car. 

John opens the back door for Dave, mock bowing. “Ladies first.”

Dave dives in, scooting over to the far seat so John can sit. He shoots John a wide smirk. “Age before beauty.”

John flushes once more, but dives in after Dave. They resume the hand holding. It seems neither boy can have enough of the hand holding.

“You boys have fun?” Dad asks from the front seat.

“Yeah! We danced a bunch and ate the entire buffet!” John answers. Then, he turns to Dave, smiling. “We had heaps of fun…”

“I'm glad to hear that. What about you Dave, did you have fun?” Dad, like his son, turns his attention on Dave.

“Yeah. It was a lot better than I expected.” Dave replies truthfully.

“That's good. Now since it's pretty late and you're probably exhausted, I've set up the air mattress.” Dad turns away from Dave, focussing mainly on the snowy road ahead.

“Thanks Dad! But we-” John starts but Dad cuts him off.

“No buts! Dave gets the air mattress.” Dad's voice is final. John flushes, but this time in utter mortification. He knows what Dad is implying, and while he has thought of Dave in  _ that _ way in the past, there's no way he's doing  _ it _ so soon!

“Alright, thanks Mr Egbert.” Dave is also blushing, also understanding what Dad is implying.

“I've told you a million times Dave, call me Dad!” Dad insists, back to his usual self.

“Alright yeah.” Dave says loudly, before lowering his voice so only John can hear. “Except no, that's weird, especially now.”

The car lapses into silence, with Dad focussing on the road and John and Dave focussing on each other.

Snow keeps falling down outside, gently, settling on every possible surface. John and Dave huddle together, both glad in the development in their relationship. It's not going to be a perfect fairytale, it'll be slow to start off with and take some time getting used to. But it's theirs. It'll grow and develop into something much, much more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And then they went home and went straight to bed because naps are good. Dad comes in early in the morning to double check theres no tomfoolery going on and finds them holding hands between the beds fast asleep.


	23. 16 Years Old. Proper First Date.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave go to see a mediocre action film, before Dave takes John to see his surprise ;)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was much longer that I intended. But oh well, I hope you enjoy regardless. Please leave what you thought/think of the fic in the comments below!
> 
> OKAY ATTENTION   
> So i just realised what a massive time gap it appears to be between this chapter and the last chapter (winter and then summer) i am so sorry I didnt notice or think of it at the time. So I'm going to change it to spring just so it makes a little more sense? Sorry if it caused confusion or whatever!

The local cinema is a place most popular in the school holidays. The scent of cooking popcorn and artificial butter is ingrained into the place from years of service to the community. Kids run around on the candy littered floor, shrieking at the top of their lungs. Their parents stand together in a sort of shell shocked daze, scared of what the next few weeks will bring in.

It is this atmosphere that John and Dave walk into on the first Saturday of the spring holidays. They're all set for a proper official movie date, to see the new Thundercrushers movie. They’ve heard it's decent enough, and it's the only thing playing at the moment that really appeals to both of them. It's not exactly the perfect date movie, but who cares about perfection when you have action movies.

However despite its PG-13 rating, there is still more children in the theatre than adults. Considering Thundercrushers is the only thing on against 50 Shades of Grey, there's no confusion over what they're seeing. John and Dave share a  _ look _ . Turns out their viewing experience may not be as quiet as they thought.

 

“Hey it's okay. It'll still be fun without the screamers.” Dave reassures John's worried expression. Just as he says that however, a bunch of children playing tag run past them, nearly smashing into their legs without any warning nor care. “Or not. It's alright John, we can see it another day.”

“No.” John shakes his head. “I promised you a movie date and that's what you're getting. Besides, we'll sit up the back, they won't bother us.”

“Are you sure?” Dave looks a little wary of all the children running around but as always, John manages to cheer him up.

“Positive! Come on, let's get our tickets.” John walks towards the counter, taking care to avoid the children running around. Luckily, it seems that all the other people have already bought their tickets, which means John and Dave don't have to wait long.

“Hi, how are you today?” Says the girl at the counter, face cheerful but eyes dead.

“I'm good, how are you?” John smiles back at her. “Can I please get two tickets to the Thundercrushers movie, as well as a large popcorn?”

“Sure thing, coming right up!” The girl types in something on the computer, before looking back up. “That'll be $39.50! Card or cash?”

“Card.” John pulls his debit card out of his wallet, placing it against the side of the machine until it beeps its approval. The machine prints out two tickets, which the girl rips off to give to them before hurrying off to the popcorn machine  to start filling out a large bucket.

“Hopefully it's good. I've heard mixed reviews.” John turns back to Dave.

“So have I. I'm just hoping it has as many explosions and cheesy one-liners as the first one.” Dave laughs, shifting the weight of his shoulder bag. He's the one smuggling all the treats into the movie, like soda, chips, party mix lollies and chocolate.

“Here you are! Enjoy your movie!” The girl chirps, handing John the bucket of popcorn. “It's viewing in Cinema 1.”

“Thanks! You have a nice day!” John waves a goodbye as he turns to head towards the cinema.

Dave falls upon the popcorn like an eagle on its prey. He leans over John, picking random pieces and popping them in his mouth. John just sighs and hands him the bucket. Since their movie is Cinema 1, they enter it pretty quickly.

 

The theatre itself is dark, but still relatively well lit. It appears they're a bit early, as they're not even playing the ads and trailers yet. John and Dave take their places up the back, far away from the others in the theatre. It seems they have a little time to talk before the movie.

“Hey Dave don't eat all the popcorn! We gotta save some for the movie!” John complains, picking a piece of popcorn out the depleted popcorn supply. Dave looks up, incredibly guilty, before handing the bucket to John.

“Sorry.”

“No it's fine Dave. I'd probably eat it all too if I was holding the bucket. Here. I'll put it on the ground.” John places the popcorn bucket on the floor in front of him. “Now we won't be tempted until the movie starts.”

“Yeah good idea.” Dave opens his shoulder bag, pulling out two cans of coke before putting the bag back down on the seat beside him. He hands John a can, who accepts it with a smile.

“Thanks Dave. I hope it's good.” John looks worried. Although this is kind of a first date, so he has a right to be.

“You've said this several times already, it'll be fun.” Dave reassures him. Dave's nervous too, he wants to do his best to impress John and make him happy. Hopefully, his little surprise for after the movie does this. John grins back at him.

On the large screen in front of them, all the trailers and ads begin playing. The lights are still lit but only because people are still filing in. The ads are all for businesses in the local area and it's nothing John and Dave haven't seen before. John's always believed the best parts of the cinema (besides the popcorn and movie itself of course) is the movie trailers.

“This Fall…” The movie screen blares, the voice overs words appearing on the screen. “Comes a story that will chill you to the bone…” 

The screen flashes an image of a girl with her back turned against the camera, who turns towards the camera in shock at the last minute. “Something is coming...from the skies above.” 

“Oh this looks interesting! Horror isn't really my thing, but it looks okay.” John says, leaning forward in his seat.

“John. The amount of overdone horror stereotypes in the first 15 seconds alone…” Dave begins, but is struck mute by the pure absurdity of the next scene. A knife falls seemingly from the sky, killing the woman. The viewer isn't sure what did it, until the camera pans outwards to reveal the reflection of a drone in the windowpane.

“Oh my god…” Whispers John, staring at the screen in shock. “We have to see this.”

“No way in hell!” Dave nearly spits out his coke in shock. “This is the worst thing I've ever seen! The lighting, the acting, the costumes, god the whole premise is terrible!”

“You haven't even seen the whole trailer, or the movie!” John reasons, secretly loving this side of Dave. The side that's so passionate about everything, but afraid of being seen. It is a little insufferable, but it's a small price to pay for Dave's pure joy.

“I don't need to to know how bad it'll be. I already know it'll be terrible.” Dave sniffs, taking a sip of coke.

“Oh you and that film class of yours. Now you over analyse every single movie we watch together.” John shakes his head.

“I'm sorry!” Dave's facade crumbles. He's worried, face rifed with tension. “I'll stop. I promise I'll make it nice.”

“No, don't! It's sweet, I like that side of you. But I'd like to watch Thundercrushers without your constant ripping on it. Tell me about all the little flaws afterwards okay?” John pats Dave's arm reassuringly. “I know you love doing that.”

“Oh, yeah. Okay.” Dave still looks pretty embarrassed.

“Seriously! I love that side of you, I love how passionate you get about some things. Sometimes it's weird things, like dead stuff, but I love to see you nerd out on it.” John beams up at him and Dave blushes furiously. He's never thought about it in that way before. “So promise me you'll tell me all about your movie analysis and stuff after the actual movie.”

“Yeah. Alright then. Prepare for a shit storm.” Dave smirks, back to his cocky self.

“Don't worry, I've brought an umbrella.” John says before turning back to the movie screen. It appears that all the trailers and ads are done, judging by the lights beginning to dim. Then, true to John's masterful deduction, the movie starts for real.

 

As an action movie, it doesn't necessarily have a plot, more explosions and tons of CGI. John doesn't care at all, and is as wowed by the special effects as all the kids in the theatre. Dave however, does care.

The last time he watched a Thundercrushers movie he wasn't doing a film course. Now he is, and he's realised how cheesy and terrible it is. All the budget seems to have been put into the action scenes, which Dave supposes is fair seeing as the entire movie is an action scene. There's also this weird romantic subplot between the protagonist and said protagonists friends mother. The whole plot is confusing and the pacing is weird. Of course, people want to see action movies for the action and not the plot. The action is pretty good, Dave has to admit. He should probably take notes for his film assignment.

John seems to be enjoying himself. During a particularly explosive car chase scene (which Dave analyses the hell out of, for future study and to impress John), John leans against Dave, entangling their hands together. That short-circuits his brain and makes him stop analysing the movie and just to sit back and try to enjoy himself. After that he does, mainly because he's more focused on John than the shitty movie. In this position, Dave can feel how warm and soft John is. He has to fight the urge to lean over and sweep John up in the biggest hug in the history of ever. It also makes him hyper aware of John, and not much aware of anything else.

All too soon, the credits roll and the movie comes to an end. Dave thought there was still an hour to go, but apparently not. As the other people in the cinema stand to go, Dave and John still sit there in that post-movie daze.

“That was...something alright.” Dave half-whispers to John, still immersed in the feel of the boy pressed against his arm.

“You didn't like it?” John looks at Dave sadly, and Dave feels a stab of guilt dash through his heart.

“No it's not that! It's you.” Dave says, dumbly and without thought.

“What?” Now John is very hurt and a little insulted. Great wording Dave!

“Shit I'm sorry! I mean, I didn't like a lot about the movie, but my favourite bit was watching it with you.” Dave frantically rewords what he said earlier.

“Oh...Dave that's so sweet…” John blushes. 

“And you said you wanted to hear me rag on it, but I want to hear you gush about it. Because I love that part of you. The part that gushes over everything and sees the good in everything.” Dave shares John's blush.

“Oh! Then I have a lot of things to say! But I'll tell you when we’re leaving okay? Because otherwise we’d be sitting here for quite a while.” John stands, grabbing all their rubbish and heading down the aisles to put it in the bin. Dave follows, shouldering his shoulder bag.

“Sure thing. And I've got a special first date surprise for you.”

“Oh really!” John spins around, eyes wide in excitement. “What is it?”

“I can't tell you that John, it's a surprise!” Dave laughs.

“Oh come on. Pleeeeease?” John whines, eyes wide and pleading.

“No way!” Dave chuckles, shoving his hands in his pockets as they walk out of the theatre and into the street. “That'll ruin the surprise.”

John pouts harder, folding his arms against his chest.

“I promise you'll love it. It's not too far from here. How about while we walk, you tell me what you thought of the movie?” Dave reasons, walking a little ahead in order to lead John to his surprise. He keeps his attention focused on John all the while.

“Alright, as long as you keep your promise to tell me about all the bad things!” John brightens immediately, a little skip in his step. “Okay, so. My favourite part was of course the final scene! It was so tense and badass! Like, when Max spun around and shot Mr Sandman in the chest, and was all like ‘no dreams for you. Only death.’ that was so cool!”

“Really? What else did you like?” Dave says, gesturing for John to keep going.

“Ummmm….the part where...no...oh! The part where he exploded that guys...no...hold on. I think the finale was the only part that really sticks out for me!” John shakes his head in disbelief. “Since I’ve got nothing on the movie, how about you rip on it now.”

“Yeah alright.” Dave starts, taking a sharp turn left down the footpath. John looks at him in confusion, as this is the complete opposite direction to his house. Dave just smirks back, this is all part of his surprise. “Okay so, heads up, I thought the entirety of the movie was bullshit.”

“Of course.” John smiles to himself. “Please tell me why.”

“I will admit the action scenes were pretty good, but seeing as action movies generally shove all their budget on the CGI and action scenes, they were banking on them being good for success. So I guess the action scenes were good.” Dave begins.

“Wait I thought you thought the movie was bullshit?” John interrupts, a shit-eating grin on his face.

“I'm getting to that!” Dave huffs, clearly insulted. “Anyway like I was saying before I was so  _ rudely _ interrupted, yeah the action scenes are good but that's about it. The plot was so confusing, and like you said earlier you hardly remember anything memorable from the movie. The lighting was terrible. It was so dark, I couldn't make out anything on the screen. Usually that lighting is only used for dramatic scenes-not the whole movie. And the costumes were really out of place for the story it was supposed to be. And the acting...oh god. Was the only thing the actors could say bad trash talk? Don't even get me started on the romantic subplot.”

“Wow Dave. You seem to have not enjoyed any of the movie.” John's face crumples and he looks away. “I hope you had a good time. It is our first date after all.”

“I did don't worry! It's just my film class making me see way too deep into it. I enjoyed it! I always love hanging out with you. I'm having a good time.” Dave reassures him, affectionately bumping into John.

“I'm glad. Sorry, I want this date to go well. I really like you.” John sighs, turning back to look at Dave.

“I want it to go well too. I really like you and I want to be with you, like officially and stuff.” Suddenly Dave comes to a halt. “We're here.”

 

Dave has stopped outside a fancy looking ice cream parlour, exterior painted a pretty pastel pink. From the giant window, the inside appears to be decorated like a retro 50s milk bar.

“What is this place? Is it the surprise?” John asks, standing beside Dave.

“Yeah. Me and Dirk found it on a walk together after ahh...something happened at home. It's really good ice cream and it's really nice inside, so I thought after the movie you'd like to go here with me for ice cream.” Dave smiles, moving forward to open the double doors for John. As John passes, he reaches over and grabs Dave's hand in his own with a coy smile. The bell on the door tinkles as they enter together.

“Thanks Dave. That's really sweet of you.” John says. “Sweet, like ice cream? Get my joke?”

“You dork.” Dave smiles affectionately. Confidently, he walks over to the display case of all the ice cream, John hanging onto his hand. “So what do you want?”

“Oh there's so much to choose from…” John presses closer to the display case to see the variety of flavours on display. There's sorbets in one section (with flavours such as mango, lemon, orange, strawberry and banana) and a much larger array of ice creams (with flavours such as choc brownie, strawberry cheesecake, caramel fudge, vanilla and choc mint). There's also many toppings, as well as menu items the staff can make you with your own choice of ice cream.

“I'd recommend for you specifically a triple scoop ice cream with hokey pokey, choc brownie and honeycomb choc topped with choc chip cookie chunks and party mix lollies.” Dave says, pointing out each ingredient as he says them. John loves sweet and sugary food and this combination is perfect for him.

“That sounds really good! I'll take that then, since you picked it out for me.” John grins. “What are you getting?”

“My usual-apple and cinnamon pie with vanilla ice cream. I prefer to stick with the classics.” Dave says. 

Then, he moves on to the actual counter, attracting the attention of the person serving. They seem to know who Dave is-he must be a regular then. Dave places their order, and the person serving smirks at him knowingly. John pulls his wallet out to pay when the time comes, but Dave spins around and shoves John's hand down.

“I insist. You paid for the movie.” Dave says, a fierceness in his eyes. John steps back as Dave pulls out his card and completes the transaction. Dave has his own job now-working at the local Walmart with Jade-so he has his own money to pay for things.

“If you'd just take a seat at that table over there, we'll bring your order to you.” The person at the counter says, pointing out the particular table.

“Thanks!” John chirps as Dave leads him towards the particular table.

 

The pinkish red seats are comfortable, yet very squeaky under John's weight. The table is made of hard plastic, but it's so clean that John can see his reflection on the white surface.

“Wow. It's really nice here.” John says, a little awkwardly. He looks out the window, to the quiet street outside.

“It is. I come here a lot.” Dave looks around a bit, eyes darting to the retro posters to the jukebox to the barstools along the counter.

“I could tell.” John laughs. “The staff know you by name.”

“Well…” Dave blushes, beginning to fiddle with the packets of sugar on the table. “I like ice cream.”

“Hey…” John starts, a little nervous about asking this next question but its been on his mind ever since Dave said it. “Earlier when you said you wanted to be with me officially...was that true?”

Dave freezes, dropping the packets of sugar he was holding in his hands. “Yeah. Yeah it is.” He blushes, avoiding John's gaze.

“In like...a best friend way or a boyfriend way?” John asks, still a little confused.

“John we're going on a romantic date what do you think?” Dave deadpans.

“Oh you're on a first date Dave? No one told me!” A new voice enters the conversation. It belongs to a rather short, lithe girl with unruly grey hair (the sign of a shifter, John remembers Dave saying) and dark green eyes, wearing the uniform of the ice cream parlour. She sets down their orders, placing the apple pie in front of Dave and the triple scoop ice cream in front of John. 

“Sorry Nepeta, I thought everyone already knew.” Dave replies sheepishly.

She huffs before setting her gaze on John, a ferociousness in her eyes. “Now you be good to him. He is very sweet and you're lucky to have him.”

“I know.” John smiles, genuine. “I'm very lucky.”

“Good.” She huffs again, before turning to the both of them and smiling. “Anyway good luck on your date!” She then turns on her heel and walks back into the kitchen.

“She means well.” Dave mumbles. “She's really nice usually.”

“Oh I don't doubt it.” John mumbles under his breath, taking a bite of hokey pokey ice cream mixed in with a few choc chip cookie chunks. His eyes widen in surprise-it's very good. Dave knows him well.

“Anyway. I was wondering…” Dave starts, continuing the conversation before Nepeta interrupted them. “If you'd like to be my boyfriend.”

“I…” John blushes. He knows they're on a romantic date. He knows Dave likes him, and he knows he likes Dave back. He wasn't expecting this question, but it's not unwelcome.

“I'm sorry if it's too early!” Dave immediately backtracks, frantically beginning to babble until John lays a hand on his arm reassuringly.

“No, it's not too early. I was a little shocked by the question I guess. But yes, I'd like to be your boyfriend. I'd love to be able to call you my boyfriend.” 

“Oh...Then...can I kiss you?” Now it's Dave's turn to ask that question. John just nods his confirmation and leans across the table. Their lips meet, and it's just like their first kiss, only better. There's still that insecurity, but it's been weakened by a soft passion just beginning to glow.

They break apart, but leave one of their hands conjoined. They focus on their ice cream, but sneak shy little glances at each other when they think the other isn't looking. Finally, they are able to look each other in the eye and call the other not best friend (although they still are), but boyfriend.


	24. 16 Years Old. Coffee Date.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After work coffee dates are so nice with your boyfriend...

Working retail is hard and very slow. Time runs by so slowly, especially when your break or the end of your shift is so soon. It's particularly slow when you're nearing the end of your shift.

Customer after customer, who, after a while, begin to blur together. All buying clothes and hard plastic toys and other various bullshit that's cheap and plasticky and bound to break in at least a month. Walmart is known as the place only weirdos shop at, and after 6 months of working there, Dave knows this fact all too well.

Dave glances at his watch, which reads 12:53. That's only a minute more than the last time he checked. It's like time itself just knows he has plans after his shift, and is purposely going slow just to mock him.

“Stop clock watching Dave! Time won't go any faster when you keep staring at it!” Jade chirps, looking over from her register with a cheery smile. Dave has no idea how she does it.

“But I have one of my coffee dates with John after work. I can literally smell Starbucks right now.” Dave sighs wistfully, staring in the direction of the Starbucks, despite not being able to see it in his position.

“No you can't, that's physically impossible.” Jade scoffs in disbelief. “You're placeboing yourself.”

“Oooooo there goes Miss ‘I'm working a longer shift than you the managers like me better’.” Dave mocks. Jade glowers at him, but has to turn around to serve a customer. As soon as she's done she spins around with a glare.

“Says Mr ‘I earn more than you because I'm a man and I always remind everyone of this.’ And I've never said that!”

“Touche, touche.” Dave shrugs. He glances at his watch once more. 12:57. Just three more minutes!

A customer comes to his register, forcing Dave back into his customer service persona. After serving them, he glances at his watch once more. 12:59. Alright, he's out of here.

Hurriedly, before any new customers can come up to him, he switches his light off and puts up the closed sign. “Bye Jade, have fun.” He calls to her, in a mocking tone. Just as he leaves, a long line of customers appear, all at her register.

“Dave!” She protests, before figuring it hopeless (because Dave is a stubborn asshole) and speaking into her ear piece. “Hey can I have some assistance to registers? Dave just left.”

Dave smirks, strutting away to the staff office to collect his things and get out of there. It's not too big a store, and pretty soon he's outside, having clocked off and collected his things, waving his goodbye to Jade. Fucking Walmart.

 

A hot breeze hits him as soon as he leaves through those sliding doors. Dave suddenly longs for the air conditioner in Walmart, but it's short lived as soon as he sees his boyfriend sitting across the street at Starbucks.

“John!” He cries out, making the boy look up from his phone. John immediately perks up, waving Dave over with a smile. Dave crosses the road, looking both ways before doing so. He joins John at the table, dumping his ass down on the seat opposite.

“Hey Dave! How was work? And before you ask, don't worry. I've already ordered. A dark mocha Frappuccino for you and a S’mores Frappuccino for me. Also two yo yo biscuits.” John greets him (like always) with a smile and some babbling. “Sorry if you wanted anything else but I just got your usual.”

“Work was boring and tedious. You know how I used to make fun of people who shopped at Walmart? I've stopped doing that now because now I'm just so used to that bullshit. They can come in naked all they want I won't bat a fucking eyelid.” Dave shakes his head in disbelief. “Anyway, thanks for ordering ahead. I need coffee and fast. How was work for you?”

John wrinkles up his nose and laughs. “God you had to ask. I have to be back by 12:25 though, my break ends at 12:30.”

“Had to deal with any shit heads?” Dave asks. John opens his mouth to answer, but is interrupted by the waiter bringing them their drinks and biscuits. 

“Enjoy!” The waiter says, setting down their drinks in front of them before walking back to the busy inside.

“We will! Thank you!” John calls to the waiters retreating back before turning his attention back to Dave. “Yeah, I had a really bad one today…”

“Oh shit what happened!?” Dave exclaims, pulling his drink closer and staring at John in earnest.

“It was nothing that bad really. But she yelled at me and then afterwards I started crying and I had to sit out the back to calm down.” John admits, taking a sip of his own drink. “It was really embarrassing. Especially since my manager was trying to comfort me and I just kept crying and he looked super awkward.”

“Geez man, that sucks.” Dave frowns. “What did she do?” 

“Oh you know, typical soccer mom stuff. She demanded I look for an item for her, we didn't have said item and then she yelled at me.” John pulls a face. “It's fine, really. I just cried because I'd already had some rude customers today and was in a shitty mood from that.”

Dave shakes his head in annoyance. He knows exactly where John is coming from, he's gotten a lot of shit from customers too. John looks fine, but Dave knows how John goes great lengths to hide his sadness. In an effort to cheer up his downtrodden boyfriend, he decides to do what he always does-tell stories about the weird people at Walmart. “I'm sorry to hear that. One time at Walmart, I had to serve this lady who-”

“What happened to not making fun of Walmart people anymore?” John smirks coyly, grabbing one of the yo yos from the plate.

“Do you want to hear my funny story about her or not?” Dave raises an eyebrow.

“Yeah, go on, shoot.” John says with a mouth full of biscuit.

“Well at the time we had a lot of chocolate stuff on clearance-and I'm telling you, it was very cheap because we needed to get rid of them. Since we've gotta upsell or get yelled at, I was telling this lady about them. Then she starts going on about Cadbury and palm oil and how she never buys it. She was standing there for half an hour blabbering on while I had to serve other people!” Dave finishes his story. Okay so it's not a completely bad customer like John had, but it's enough to joke about.

“Wow. Well those environmentalists are always pretty intense.” John muses, finishing his biscuit.

“Yeah.” Dave says, reaching for his own biscuit. “You're on until five right? You're making that sweet green dough?”

“Haha yeah. They really like me there, I get a lot of full day shifts.” John says, taking a long slurp of his drink. He's nearly done, which isn't surprising at all. Dave however is only a quarter of the way into his drink. He's savouring it.

“Hey, did you hear about that new Zelda game?” Dave asks, to keep the conversation going. John's eyes absolutely light up, and Dave knows he said the right thing to bring his boyfriend out of the dumps caused by a shitty customer.

“The Wind Waker HD remake? Oh my god dude, I can't wait to play it.” John gushes. “Wind Waker has always been my favorite Zelda game, and now it's in HD! As soon as it comes out, I'm getting it.”

Dave smiles and slowly sips at his Frappuccino as he watches his boyfriend blather on about Zelda. Zelda has never been his thing, but John adores it, especially Wind Waker. Sometime about the exploration and the music? John always mentions that.

“Isn't it just a remake with different lighting though?” Dave says, intentionally stirring the pot. “Like, you know, Nintendo is turning out yet another remake!”

John narrows his eyes. “You watch your mouth, it is so much more than just a remake.”

Dave just shrugs, still sipping at his Frappuccino.

“It's like...so much better. It's adapted to the modern technologies of this time. It'll change combat and add more puzzles and ramp up the difficulty while still offering that same nostalgia of the original.” John says, a wistful smile on his face.

“So definitely just a remake.” Dave smirks again.

“Well…” John sighs. “Anyway, you got the time?”

“Yeah it's. ..” Dave glances down to check his watch. “7:20. You'd best be going.”

“Yeah…” John says, smiling sadly, standing up in his chair. “I'd best be off. Thanks for the coffee date, it was nice.”

“Hey, you paid. Which means I'm paying for next time.” Dave says. “I'll walk you back to work.”

“Aw, thanks Dave. That's sweet of you.” John smiles, before linking Dave's arm in his own.

 

The two set off down the street, holding hands (with Dave holding onto the remainder of his Frappuccino). John's workplace isn't too far, and they get there in a few fast minutes. Dave sighs. It's funny how slowly time goes at work, and how fast it goes when he's with John.

“Well...this is me.” John says sheepishly, coming to a halt in front of the front window of the magic shop.

“No that's a shop.” Dave smirks.

“Hey! Bad puns are  _ my _ thing!” John laughs, punching Dave lightly on the shoulder. “Anyway, thanks for walking me back.”

“You're welcome, have fun on the rest of your shift.” Dave says. John leans forward and wraps him in a hug, squeezing him tight.

“I won't, but thanks.” John breaks away with a shy smile.

“Can I have a goodbye kiss?” Dave asks, only half joking. With a nod, John stands on his tippy toes in order to give Dave a smooch on the lips. Their kisses have grown a lot more intimate in the few months that they've been dating. It still has to be relatively chaste since they're in public. 

John breaks away, licking his lips with a coy smile. “Bye Dave.”

With that, he turns away to head back into the toy shop. Dave sighs in amazement-he is so in love with this boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So next chapter will be containing those sexy times ;)   
> So stay tuned for awkward boys figuring stuff out
> 
> Also that Cadbury lady story is true and happened to me. Its only a little dramatised with the time.


	25. 17 Years Old. Bumping Uglies.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave have their first time together, with some complications.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I am a humble lesbian who has never written gay (mlm) sex or wanted to write gay sex in her life. But, this chapter is incredibly important to John and Dave's relationship and thus I have to write it.  
> I'm offering no apologies for the shitty sex scenes, which I'm focussing heavily on dialogue (bc face it neither of them ever shut up especially Dave). This is a one time thing and I'm not doing it again, it's only getting mentioned.  
> Also since this is underage, I'm just putting up a warning now. In act 1 they don't do anything, in act 2 they start but stop and in act 3 they actually do it, but it's relatively quick and easily skipped.

“So boys, you're probably wondering why I wanted to talk to you both.” Dad sits quite composed on the couch, staring down his son and his son's boyfriend sitting opposite him.

“A little.” John admits, although he has a fairly good idea on what this is about. If this truly is about what he thinks, it's going to be very embarrassing.

“Since you two have been dating for a while, I need to educate you on the birds and the bees.” Dad announces. So it is exactly what John thought this would be about. Beside him, Dave freezes up, a pink blush beginning to spread across his cheeks.

“W-What do you mean? We've been in health class, we've gotten the talk.”

“Well yes, you've probably heard enough about sex now, so I won't repeat that talk.” Dad says, prompting a sigh of relief out of John. “No, I'm here to talk about the dangers of teenage pregnancy.”

Oh God no bring back the sex talk this is so much worse. “Dad-”

“No John. We're having this conversation. Since you're trans, when you have sex with Dave you can get pregnant. And I'm telling you now, I don't want that.  _ You _ don't want that.” Dad continues sternly. “Teenage pregnancy is a serious matter John. If you're not careful, you could ruin your life.”

“Dad, I'm not....we haven't” John tries again but Dad holds a hand up to stop him.

“You want to be a doctor right? You can't be a doctor when you're pregnant at 17. And you.” Dad fixes his gaze on Dave, who shrinks back in fear. “You better not get my son pregnant.”

“I won't!” Dave squeaks, very uncharacteristically. “We haven't even had sex yet!”

“Dave!” John squeaks back, voice coming out in a hissy whisper. “Don't tell my Dad that! It's embarrassing!”

“And I want you to keep it that way.” Dad states. Both John and Dave stare at Dad with wide eyes.

“Wha-dad!” John protests, blushing heavily.

“Yeah, we're horny teenagers!” Dave joins his boyfriend in his protest. “You can't expect us to not fuck!”

“Dave!” John squeaks again, reddening harder at the very thought.

“Alright, alright.” Dad sighs, raising a hand to calm their protests. “I know you're teenagers and all you probably want to do is be together in a sexual way. But you have to have restraint. I know what I'm saying is very embarrassing and awkward for you, but it's true. I know that my speech won't deter you from sex, but I want you to be safe. So I went and bought some protection for you. You are aware how it works right?”

Dad pulls out a box of condoms and sets it on the coffee table. John notices with an embarrassed shock that they're size Extra Small.

"Now with the sizing, I assumed you were that size Dave seeing as you're most likely overcompensating with your personality" Dad says. Dave flushes with anger and embarrassment. He opens his mouth to protest, but John slaps him on the arm.

“Gee, um, thanks Dad.” John says, a little shell shocked. Dave just makes an offended noise.

“Now promise me, both of you, that if you have sex you use protection. I want you to be safe and have fun, but I don't want you to catch anything or get pregnant!” Dad says sternly. 

“I promise.” John replies, knowing there's no getting out of it.

“Yeah, me too.” Dave promises sullenly.

“What was that Dave?” Dad raises an eyebrow.

“I promise!” Dave squeaks again, scared of Dad's fury.

“That's better. I want grandchildren, but not yet!” Dad laughs, back to his usual joking self.

Dave gives John a very wide eyed, shocked look. John just shrugs back. His dad is very scary sometimes.

“Well if that's all...we'll be going then. Thanks for the erm...condoms then.” John stands up, awkwardly leaning forward to grab the box of condoms. Dave stands up behind him, pressing close to John.

Dad rises as well, a satisfied smile on his face. “I'm going to the kitchen to cook dinner. It should be ready in an hour or so.”

“Alright bye Dad.” John says in a rush, grabbing Dave's arm and practically dragging Dave away from the living room and towards the stairs in an effort to escape.

 

“Okay so that was humiliating.” Says Dave once they're clear of the stairs, glancing down at the Extra Small sized condoms.

“You don't have to tell me twice.” John rolls his eyes. “I'm not going to get pregnant! Ugh! And my  _ dad _ was talking so casually about us having sex...I'm shoving those condoms under my bed where I never have to see them again.”

“Haha, you two got the sex talk.” Jane pokes her head out from her bedroom door. “I heard everything. It was hilarious.”

“Shut up Jane! If you were in our shoes, you wouldn't be laughing.” John glowers, folding his arms against his chest.

“But it wasn't me. So I am.” Jane's head disappears before popping out again to stare directly at the box of condoms. “Oh and Dave, I think Dad found the perfect fit.”

Laughing, Jane ducks her head behind her door frame once more to avoid being hit by a flying box of condoms. 

“It was kind of nice for dad to give them to us, even though it was humiliating.” John sighs, bending down to pick up the packet of condoms Dave threw.

“Easy for you to say.” Dave sulks, staring at the sizing once more.

“I guess so, Mr Extra Small.” John smirks, laughing as he heads down the hallway into his own bedroom.

“Don't call me that!” Dave squeaks again, following John down the corridor.

Well that was absolutely mortifying, but all parents eventually must tell their children all about the birds and the bees-and the dangers they bring.

 

☆☆☆

 

“I...I can't believe we're actually doing this.” John murmurs, breath heavy.

“We're doing this bro. We're making it happen.” Dave says, cocky grin hiding his own nerves.

“Please don't reference your stupid webcomic when we're about to have sex…” John sighs, shaking his head.

“Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff is not stupid!” Dave rears back, rolling away from John to sit on the other side of the bed. “I'm putting my pants back on if you insult it one more time.”

“Oh come on Dave I'm sorry! Come back here.” John laughs, patting beside him on the bed only to be promptly ignored. “Alright, alright. Honestly? It's really admirable you've made something like that and kept it going for as long as you have. I'm sorry I made fun of it.”

“That's better.” Dave sniffs, before rolling back over to John and collapsing on him face first. He succeeds in knocking John down on the bed, pausing a little before giving him a chaste kiss and breaking away.

“Woah. Hello there, you're uh, getting right into it.” John chokes out, not knowing how to feel about the feeling of Dave's half-hard dick pressed against his thigh. Since they're both naked, it's pretty damn obvious.

“Do you mind?” Dave asks breathlessly.

“Not really...do you?” John replies, just as breathless.

“No. Hold up lemme grab a condom. Don't want you getting pregnant and then your dad murdering me.” Dave slides off him, opening John's bedside drawers to pull out a box of condoms and some lube. The box of condoms is sized medium this time, thank you very much.

“He wouldn't kill you.” John laughs. Dave spins around to give him a  _ look _ . “Alright, maybe he would.”

Dave crawls back over to sit in front of John once more. He casually slings his arms over John's shoulders, prompting John to lean forward and catch his lips in a kiss. It's a lot more hot and heated than their other kisses, involving tongue and teeth. John's arms travel down Dave's back, taking their sweet damn time and causing shivers up and down Dave's spine.

Suddenly John pulls back, hands halting down their exploration of Dave's back. “What if Dad walks in?”

Dave pauses, blinking a little before replying. “What? No John, he won't. He's asleep remember?”

“What if he wakes up and hears us?” John asks again.

“Good point. Let's hope he doesn't.” Dave reasons, using his thumb to gently rub against John's cheek.

“A-alright. Fingers crossed!” John smiles sheepishly, a little embarrassed. He resumes his exploration of Dave's back, except this time it's only one hand. John moves his other hand to hover over Dave's dick, looking up at him for permission. “May I?”

“Yeah sure, knock yourself out.” Dave lets out a dry chuckle, eyes wide with nervousness. 

With a coy smile, John wraps his hand around Dave's dick. It feels weird with the condom, but whatever, it's better than Dad yelling at them. Dave lets out an embarrassing, soft moan, arms trembling in pleasure.

“Dude, I'm hardly touching it.” John laughs. Just to tease him, John gives it an experimental tug. 

“Agh...fuck.” Dave gasps, eyes wide. His gasps grow louder as John thumbs the tip, rubbing it gently. Through his gasps he manages to let out a: “Where do you want me to stick it?”

“Jeez Dave, how eloquent.” John snorts. “But I don't really mind.”

Dave manages to shuffle forward, unwrapping his arms from John's shoulders to guide his dick towards John's vagina. John stops his rubbing, opening his legs a little wider.

“Wait!” John protests. 

Dave immediately stops his advance. “What's wrong John?”

“What if the condom breaks? And then I get pregnant and Dad murders the both of us?” John stutters out, embarrassed.

“ It's unlikely it will, but I can go in the back door if you'd like.” Dave says, shuffling away to give John space. “It'll take more prep but there's zero chance you'll get pregnant.”

“D-does it hurt?” John stutters, cheeks reddening more.

“Of course John, I'm sticking my dick up your ass.” Dave deadpans.

“Have you done this before?” John asks, looking a little uneasy.

“What sex? Yeah, I've had sex before. I haven't been with a boy before though.” Dave shrugs like it's no biggie.

“You had fun right?” John seems to be becoming more and more uneasy by the second.

“Well yeah, you're supposed to have fun. Look, do you want to do this or not? Because if you don't there's no way in hell I'm doing it with you.” Dave shakes his head and rests his hand on John's shoulder.

“I...no. I'm sorry, but I'm worried about Dad and if it'll hurt...mainly Dad. I think the hurting thing is natural?” John winces, those thoughts running through his mind.

“That's fine John.” Dave kisses John on the cheek, shuffling to sit beside him. “I love you. If you don't want to have sex yet, that's fine. Besides, your Dads pretty scary.”

John smiles, relieved. He flops down on his bed, pulling the covers over him because it's a little chilly being naked. Dave follows his lead, pulling the covers up to his nose.

“I want to have sex with you, don't get me wrong.” John starts, rolling over to look at Dave guiltily. “It's mainly just Dad. I love him, a lot. But he can be really overprotective sometimes and I'm just worried about what he'd say and do if he found out I...”

“It's okay John. I understand. I want you to be completely ready before we do anything. Like I get not wanting to disappoint your dad.” Dave rolls over as well, looking his boyfriend in the eyes.

“I want to. I'm just...kind of...scared.” John mumbles.

“My dick isn't that scary is it?” Dave smirks. 

John lets out a snort of laughter before nudging Dave's chest playfully. He leaves his hand there, pressed against his boyfriends chest so he can hear the beating of his heart. “No. Just in general. Sex is this big, scary intimate thing. Like my PDHPE and my Sport and Rec teachers always go on about how it's a bad thing! And that makes it a bit off putting.”

“Oh Mr Taylor is an asshole and Miss Williams is a total prude.” Dave snorts. “They've probably never had sex in their life.”

“They have children Dave.” John rolls his eyes.

“They could have adopted, you don't know.” Dave shrugs.

“I don't know.” John rolls his eyes yet again. Under the covers he sneaks his hand slowly around Dave's hand, squeezing for comfort. “I'm a little tired honestly. Do you just want to snuggle up and go to bed?”

“I thought you'd never ask.” Dave smiles, shuffling closer. “I am totally down for a hug with my amazing boyfriend.”

“Oh stop…” John blushes, diving a little closer towards Dave. Then he pauses, staring up at Dave with earnest eyes. “Dave, are you gonna shift back? You need rest.”

Dave immediately freezes up. “N-not tonight. I'll be fine, I promise you. I haven't been shifting that long.” He manages to stutter out. 

“Alright…” John says regretfully. Dave's regressed a little in terms of his insecurity about his true form. It hurts, but John's doing his best to bring him out of it. With a sad smile, John leans forward to give Dave a light kiss on the nose. “But let me know if you need a break.”

“I will.” Dave, as always, waves John's concern away. “I promise.”

A little relieved, John rolls over to turn off his bedside lamp, plunging the room back into darkness. “Goodnight Dave.”

“Goodnight John.” Dave replies, smiling into the darkness as he feels John snuggle into him.

John may have been wary about sex, but both him and Dave have all the time in the world. They are after all, horny teenagers, and they're bound to fuck eventually.

 

☆☆☆

 

John's shitty car bumps and rattles along the dirt road winding through the bush, jolting and bumping the two passengers inside. Dad believes the two teenagers are going on a stargazing picnic date up at Lookout Point, but in reality they're going to have their first time together at Makeout Point.

They have tried to have sex before, in the comfort of John's bed, but John's worry and fear of his father finding out soon rendered that impossible. So, they're trying it far away from John's dad's influence to see if that makes a difference.

Packed inside the picnic basket is, of course, all the necessary picnic supplies and a picnic blanket as well as a packet of condoms and some lube. All the essentials for a trip like this.

 

“We're almost there huh? You ready for this?” Dave asks his boyfriend, nursing the picnic basket in the passenger seat.

“Yeah! I'm excited!” John replies, only half focusing on Dave.

“Jade says it's a really good spot for stargazing.” Dave says, staring out the window at the dark sky above.

“You told Jade we were going to have sex up there!?” John squeaks in shock.

“No!” Dave starts. “I just told her we were going to stargaze and she recommended Makeout Point ‘despite its name’.”

“Good.” John huffs out a sigh of relief. “Because if you told Jade, then Rose knows too and I'd never hear the rest of it.”

“You're right. She's way too nosey for her own good.” Dave tuts, shaking his head. “In fact she's probably already got an inkling.”

John laughs, loudly and genuinely. Dave joins him, marvelling in his boyfriends wide smile. 

The road ahead comes to a dead end, fenced off with a wooden fence, mainly to stop peoples cars. Makeout Point is a flowered, grassy area with a nice view of the surrounding city, perfect for picnics and making out. John slows down his car, bringing it to a park just beside the dead end. 

“You ready?” John asks, turning to Dave for confirmation.

“Hell yes.” Dave replies, practically throwing open the car door and diving out in an effort to get outside. He winces a little at John's glare, and closes the door extra carefully.

John just rolls his eyes and opens the car door and steps out himself, much gentler than Dave did.

“Where do you want me to put the picnic blanket? Because I don't know about you, but I'm not getting ants and grass stuck up my ass and shit.” Dave gestures at the general area with his free hand.

“I think over there, under that tree is a good spot.” John points in the direction of a relatively small sized oak tree. Underneath is a patch of grass, lusciously green.

“Sounds good.” Dave hefts up the picnic basket and, stepping over the wooden fence, makes his way to the tree. Setting down the basket, he lays out the picnic blanket in all its red and white checkered glory.

“I'll set up lighting!” John says, hurrying over to dive on the blanket. Out of the basket he pulls out some electric lanterns as well as some electric tealight candles.

“Why do we need lighting?” Dave plops down beside him, watching his boyfriend set the lanterns around the picnic blanket.

“To see dummy.” John replies with a twinkle in his eyes, poking his tongue out.

“That's a fair point. I thought it was like...mood lighting or something like that.” Dave wrinkles up his nose.

“Maybe it's both?” John smirks, leaning forward to catch his boyfriends lips in his own before going back to the picnic basket. Rummaging through it, he pulls out the box of condoms and the lube. When John turns back around, Dave's already half undressed, shirt off and his jeans half off his body. “Jeez Dave, you're getting into it really fast.”

“Hey, you can't judge. You're already getting the condoms out of the picnic basket.” Dave flushes, but continues on wiggling his pants off.

“You have a fair point.” John smiles, before wiggling his own shirt off and setting it on the grass beside the picnic blanket. His fingers pause at the buttons on his shorts, before they're joining his shirt on the grass.

“Looking good John!” Dave winks, now absolutely naked, except for the condom on his dick. Safety first.

“That better not be sarcasm.” John blushes, narrowing his eyes at Dave. 

“No!” Dave shuffles forward, grabbing John's hand and patting it awkwardly. “No, I'm being completely honest.”

“You're a sap.” Despite his words, John's smile is wide. John leans forward to kiss Dave, wrapping his arms around Dave's neck to pull him closer.

 

Dave's hands trail down John's back, gently squeezing and stroking rolls of chub as they go. John just keeps kissing him, although shivers run down his spine. Dave's hands pause at the waistband of John's boxers, and only a nod from John makes them travel past that. Soon, they're joining the rest of John's clothes on the grass.

“So…” Dave breaks away from their kiss, both hands rested on John's asscheeks. “How are we going to do this? Anal or vaginal?”

“Jeez that's forward.” John huffs, rolling his eyes, but deep down he loves the fact that Dave asked. By now, he's sitting completely on Dave's lap, and he can feel how hard his boyfriend is. He shifts a little, just to tease him. “Anal I guess. Since your hands are halfway there I guess.”

“Alright cool just lemme get lubed up.” Dave leans forward, grabbing the lube and awkwardly squirting and applying it to his hands. Slowly, giving John time to adjust, he slides a finger in. It's all about being gentle for his boyfriends first time. John seems to be enjoying himself, if his happy little moans are anything to go by.

Suddenly, as Dave applies a second finger, John lets one absolutely rip. “Oh God I am so sorry!” John squeaks, flushing with absolute mortification.

“It's okay, it's a natural process. No seriously, it's a normal thing during sex.” Dave smirks, laughing a little. His laughter grows as John farts more with each finger and as his pace quickens. John eventually joins in, but not after glaring at Dave for a bit. 

John presses his forehead against Dave's, still laughing. Their laughter blends together in a harmonious sound. 

Finally, after a lot of farting and laughter, Dave has four fingers inside John. “You all out of gas? You ready for this dick?” He grins, cheeks red from laughing so hard. 

“Oh God please don't word it like that.” John gasps out, exasperated. “But I think so? I can't really tell. And yes.”

“Alright, you'll have to shuffle around though, so you've got your back to me and so I can get easier access.” Dave explains.

“Whaaat? But you're really boney!” John makes a face.

“You can get on your hands and knees if you don't want to sit on my ‘boney’ lap, that's fine.” Dave grumbles, tone so salty it rivals the Dead Sea.

“Alright fine, I was just joking.” John sighs, leaning forward to give Dave a kiss before turning around, elevating his ass slightly. He gestures at his ass in a royal wave type manner. “You may enter.”

Dave nods, leaning forward to leave a trail of kisses up John's back, slipping his dick in John's ass with the help of some extra lube. John lets out a sound so wondrously beautiful to Dave's ears he has to pause just to listen.

“Don't stop…” John manages to gasp out.

“John I haven't even put the full tip in.” Dave laughs, earning him a glare from John.

“Well then put the whole thing in!” John demands, a stern, bossy look on his face.

“Why, yes your majesty.” Dave bows the best he can in the position he's in before fully bottoming out in John.

John lets out a screech of pleasure, which slowly peeters out to moans of absolute desire and pleasure. More of those delectable moans warble out of John's mouth as Dave experiments with his tempo. Out of those gasps, Dave swears he hears his name being repeated as a mantra. The very thought goes right to his dick, and as he thrusts he lays more kisses down John's back. Dave thinks he's also calling out John's name, but he's so euphoric right now he can't properly tell.

“Dave!” John gives one final yell, before succumbing to orgasm. John's knees sag as he comes utterly undone, the only word out of his mouth his boyfriends name. As his first orgasm fades, another one starts, and another, and another. But Dave keeps thrusting, keeps giving his boyfriend that pleasure until he himself releases. 

Dave's legs are shaky, his breath is coming in short gasps and his dick is overly sensitive. And despite John's concerns, he hasn't shifted back in a while. So it's the weakness from his after-orgasm and the whole not-shifting-back-in-a-while thing that means, once he pulls out of John, he's forced to shift back into his true form. He immediately recoils from his boyfriends shaking form, trying to shift back but to no avail.

 

“Fuck!” John gasps out, managing to sit up through his trembling body. “That was the best thing I'd ever done.”

“Yeah me too.” Dave murmurs quietly.

John spins around, unflinchingly staring at Dave. “I'm dead serious, it was. I don't know why I was so scared of it before.” 

“P-probably because of your dad?” Dave says. He's a little sore, but he can only imagine how John feels.

“Oh my God Dad…” John crawls over to Dave and collapses into Dave's chest. Dave stiffens a little, but slowly relaxes as his boyfriend idly plays with the crest of feathers around his neck. “He thinks we're  _ star _ gazing. Although...I guess we are?”

“I know I am, staring at you.” Dave mumbles quietly, but John still manages to hear it.

“Dave you are honestly the sweetest person ever.” John smiles bashfully, leaning upward to kiss Dave on the side of his beak. 

“I-I'm sorry! But I can't shift back now, the orgasm tired me out and I need to rest before I shift again.” Dave stutters out, finally addressing the elephant in the room.

“Dave, it's okay.” John gives him a comforting smile. “I understand.”

Dave visibly relaxes, before sneaking a gnarled crow hand over to John's own hand, wrapping around it.

“Are you cold? Because I'm kind of cold now.” John sighs, shivering a bit. Wordlessly, Dave moves a wing to wrap around John, soft feathers brushing against his back. “Thanks.”

The two stare up at the starry night sky for a while, enjoying the view. It's peaceful, especially with the lights of the city twinkling below. 

“Hey are you kinda hungry?” John asks, breaking the comfortable silence.

“A bit…” Dave admits.

“Cool, me too. Hold up.” John wiggles out of Dave's lap in order to grab the picnic basket, before dragging it back over to Dave. Rummaging through it, he pulls out a bunch of grapes. He wiggles back into Dave's arms (keeping the picnic basket at arms length) and holds a grape up to Dave's beak. Dave, after a little hesitation, snaps it up lightning fast.

John laughs, holding up another grape which Dave snaps up equally as fast. Dave huffs, but plucks a grape out of John's hand to feed him himself. 

“You got anything other than grapes?” Dave asks. Wordlessly, John pulls out a sandwich and a can of coke, handing to to Dave. Dave nudges his beak against John's curls as thanks.

“The city is so beautiful at night.” John muses, getting out his own can of coke and sandwich.

“How many people do you think are fucking?” Dave asks.

“What, like we were?” John smirks. “I dunno, probably a lot of people though.”

“And we oversaw it all, like the Fuck Kings.” Dave says, making John shout with laughter. 

“God, don't say it like that!” John says, after his laughter subsides.

“This fuck train has no brakes.” Dave smirks, before clutching John closer to him as his voice takes a more serious turn. “But in all seriousness, I had a fun time with you. It was good, really good. I want to do it with you again...if you'll have me.”

“Of course!” John chirps, leaning back to look into Dave's eyes. “I had a great time! But next time, we should find somewhere comfier, I'm sore all over.”

“John?” Dave smiles up at the sky, relishing in the warmth from his boyfriend.

“Yeah Dave?” John joins Dave in his stargazing, relishing in the feeling of being warm in Dave's arms.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this long shitshow of a chapter! As always, tell me what you thought in the comments below.


	26. 17 Years Old. Studying.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John studies (always gotta study) and Dave gets very clingy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy and remember to tell me what you thought in the comments below!!!!  
> Like I'm writing this as a coping mechanism for my HSC, but the lack of comments and feedback is really disheartening? Seriously I don't want to sound rude or anything but I would like feedback??? To, y'know, improve my writing.

The sound of rain patters on the roof, bringing with it the ease and comfort of a lazy Friday afternoon. A plate of snacks sits perched on John's bedside table, as John and Dave lie on John's bed, surrounded by notes, textbooks and pieces of paper. Dave is caught up in the pattering of raindrops on the tile roof, staring up at the ceiling, too sleepy to move. John however, is flicking through his notes, doing his weekly revision.

John hums to himself absentmindedly, a thoughtless tune that wavers in and out, mixing with the noise of the rain. He has to read Chapter 6 of his Biology textbook, Chapter 7 of his PDHPE textbook and answer some questions for Sports and Rec. It's nothing too hard, but he needs to do this if he wants to be a doctor.

“John. Do you think like, alternate realities exist?” Dave breaks the silence. He rolls over to look at John, back straight along the bed with legs bent and his head laying ear-first on the bed.

“What? I don't know Dave, I'm trying to study.” John sighs, risking a glance at his boyfriend before wincing at his awkward position.

“I know I know, don't get your boxers in a twist.” Dave rolls his eyes. John feels a rant coming on, Dave's been a little whiny and clingy today. “Just...alternate realities man. There's probably one where you're a shifter and I'm not. Or one where World War Two never happened. Or one where the sky is green and the grass is blue.”

“Alright Dave, I get the point.” John chuckles, only half focusing on Dave in favour of his textbook.

“Or one where you're not studying all the time and actually paying attention to me.” Dave mumbles bitterly under his breath, obviously not intended for John to hear. John of course, hears it anyway. Suddenly, he feels guilty. Being a doctor and studying for it is incredibly important to him, but so is Dave. And he's been neglecting one of them.

He closes his textbook, setting it down on the bed beside him. John then shuffles over to Dave, placing a kiss in his hair. “I'm sorry Dave…I need to study really hard to be a doctor, but you're as important as that. I'm sorry I haven't been paying as much attention to you.”

Dave freezes, a little mortified John heard him. It was meant to be unheard for a reason. Dave's just in a clingy mood, John's studies are more important. “You shouldn't be. I'm sorry, I'm just being clingy.”

“Hey now, that's not fair.” John lays a hand on Dave's chest, rubbing it absentmindedly. “I have all weekend to study, but I only have tonight with you.”

“Except we see each other everyday at school. And I'm over at yours pretty much all the time anyway.” Dave says.

“Alright then.” John shrugs, turning back to his textbook and letting go of Dave. “If you insist, I'll continue studying.”

“No wait!” Dave lunges forward, wrapping his arms around John's middle. “I...can help you study?”

John smirks. He knows how to get Dave to do what he wants. Dave is, by nature, incredibly clingy. John knows it's a little mean, but if he pretends to not want Dave's company (only a little bit, John will always want Dave's company), Dave will become very clingy. “Are you sure Dave? You're not taking Biology.”

“Of course I'm sure.” Dave huffs, snatching up John's textbook before situating himself in front of John, standing with the textbook open. “They don't call me the Master of Studying for nothing.”

“No one has ever called you that, and I know for certain you're procrastinating your own homework right now.” John giggles, hiding his mouth with his hand.

“Do you want my help or not?” Dave grumbles, staring John dead in the eyes.

“Of course I do! Sorry babe, just teasing you. You know how I love to do that.” John smiles, gesturing for Dave to continue.

 

Dave traces his finger along the page, frowning. His eyes scan the page, looking for something to ask John. Something hard, but not too hard as to make him feel stupid. “Okay so...what is the name of the artery leading into the kidney?”

“Renal Artery. Come on Dave, give me something harder.” John leans back, raising an eyebrow.

“Alright then, what is the difference between the arteries, veins and capillaries?” Dave says, after some consideration of what to ask.

“Well, the arteries have thicker walls and carry the oxygenated blood around the body. The veins carry the blood back to the heart and the capillaries are tiny and intermeshed and connect the two.” John rattles off the top of his head.

“Ok, I think you're good with this stuff.” Dave says, looking pleasantly surprised. “But, one final question.”

“Final? Dave, you've only asked two questions!” John protests.

“Hey, I'm just asking questions from the back of the chapter.” Dave shrugs. “Besides, studying is boring. You need it in short doses, and I'd rather just lie in bed with you.”

“Alright.” John rolls his eyes, smiling exasperatedly. “Shoot.”

“What is, the powerhouse of the cell?” Dave grins smugly, snapping the book shut. John just rolls his eyes, immediately recognizing the meme.

“Actually, mitochondria isn't the powerhouse of the cell. It produces ATP energy to regulate cellular respiration.” John grins, just as, if not more, smug than Dave.

“Alright, you're definitely good.” Dave dumps the textbook on the floor before slumping beside John on the bed. 

“I hope so. I have to be the best.” John looks away, brushing a lock of hair behind his ear.

“You are.” Dave reassures, half-resuming his previous lazy position. “Like I don't do Biology, but I know you're doing amazing at it.”

“Thanks Dave…” John whispers.

“No problem, boblem.” Dave smiles lazily up at John, before his face twists into a somewhat serious expression. “Hey...do you mind if I shift back? I'm pretty tired and I have work tomorrow so I need my strength.”

“Of course babe, you don't need to ask!” John is now on his PDHPE textbook, and doesn't even look at Dave as Dave shifts back into his true form. “I'm going to be studying for a while, but you're free to go to bed if you want.”

Dave does exactly that. He wiggles down in the covers until only his ears stick out--and his wings as well, but they always stick out. “Okay, don't call me a pussy or anything, but I'm going to bed now.” Dave announces, words slightly muffled under the covers.

“Alright, good night Dave.”

 

The sound of the rain patters down on the roof, lulling Dave into a sweet and dreamless sleep. John stays up, hard at work, until the allure of snuggling in bed with his boyfriend is too strong to resist. So John packs away his notes, and curls up next to his boyfriend, letting the rain and Dave's breathing lull him into dreamland.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyway, I feel like i haven't mentioned anyone except john and dave in a while, but I'm trying to establish their relationship a bit before that so :/


	27. 17 Years Old. Date Night.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave comes to the Egbert house to pick John up for a fancy restaurant date...

The doorbell rings, loudly yet sweetly echoing through the Egbert household. Dave has been here almost every day of his life since he was 6, yet he still knocks and rings the doorbell when coming in alone.

Dave Strider stands on the Egberts front porch, wearing a rented tux and clutching a bouquet of roses. John and him made plans a to have dinner in a really fancy restaurant ages ago, and they've finally got a booking. It'll be very expensive, but it's their 1st anniversary dinner. It's a special occasion.

Dad Egbert casually opens the door, smiling warmly up at Dave. The light from inside spills out onto the dark porch, warm and inviting. “Oh hello Dave, come on in! John's waiting for you upstairs.”

“Hey Mr Egbert. Nice to see you again.” Dave says, stepping into the house. It's a lot warmer inside than it is out--that tux really wasn't doing anything to protect Dave from the cold. Dad closes the door behind Dave, a soft smile still on his face. Dad then turns back to Dave, glancing down at the bouquet of roses in his hand.

“Oh, you brought flowers for John? That's very sweet of you Dave.”

“Oh well yeah…” Dave scratches the back of his head, embarrassed. “I know it's really cliché and done a lot but I was hoping he'd like them.”

“I'm sure he'd love them. He's been excited for this date for quite some time, he wouldn't stop talking about it!” Dad chuckles. “How about you visit him up in his room? He should be ready.”

“Alright, will do Mr E. See you later.” Dave waves a farewell before heading off in the direction of John's room.

Dave ascends the stairs slowly, holding the bouquet in one hand and the railing in the other. By now, he definitely knows where John's room is. On the second floor is Jane's room, John's room, Dad's room and the upstairs bathroom. John's door is the one with the faded stickers spelling out his name, the white paint a little dirty and worn from over the years.

Dave leans against the door, calling to the person within. “Hey John, guess who's here to take you on the best date of your life?”

“I...Dave? You're here?” Comes the squeaky, shocked reply. Something doesn't sound right with John… He seems a little upset.

“Well yeah babe, of course I'm here, who else would be? The cookie monster?” Dave rolls his eyes, smirking playfully.

“I-I'm not ready yet. I'm sorry…” John still sounds...upset. Dave decides to press on like usual.

“That's okay. Happy Anniversary babe. I even got you flowers. It goes with the whole fancy restaurant and suit thing, huh?”

“You got me...oh god I...that's really sweet of you Dave.” Is it just Dave or is John...crying? If he strains his ears, he can just make out muffled sobs.

“John? Babe, you alright?” Dave asks.

“I'm fine!” John snaps in reply. Okay, something's definitely wrong. John only snaps when he's in nerd rage mode, or upset.

“Alright, I'm coming in.” Before John can protest, Dave swings open the bedroom door. 

 

John is absolutely not fine. He's curled up in blankets, clutching Mittens (yes, she's still here) and sobbing his little heart out. Dave immediately rushes over, laying the bouquet on John's bedside table. John looks up at him in absolute misery and, at the sight of his snotty, tear stained face, Dave's heart breaks.

“What's wrong John?”

“N-nothing.” John hiccups.

“Oh don't pull that bullshit with me.” Dave half-growls, reaching a hand out to John. Mittens hisses at him, but Dave ignores her. “You're fucking crying. Tell me what's wrong.”

“It's stupid…” John mumbles, propping himself up.

“I don't care if it's stupid. If it's enough to make you sob and cry nestled up in your bed, I need to know. Now what's wrong,  _ please _ John.” Dave goes from ferocious to gentle and worried very fast.

“I'm on my period…” John mumbles. Tears well up as he draws in closer to himself. “And it hurts and I feel so goddamn fucking gross and disgusting. And I'm horny all the time and I feel like crying all the time.”

Dave has no idea what to say to that. Never in his life has he seen John like this. He has no idea what to do, or what John is going through, so he just draws John in for a hug. Mittens, disturbed by Dave's presence, jumps out of John's arms and trots out the door, tail flicking.

“It's really hard because I'm a boy, I know I am, but my vaginas bleeding out and I'm too fucking emotional.” John wipes tears from his eyes only for more to fall out. “I fucking hate my period so much. Every time it comes I dread it in my heart.”

“Hey, at least we have the dinner date to look forward to.” Dave reasons, trying to bring a smile to his sobbing boyfriend. Unfortunately, this seems to make it worse.

“I tried on the suit for our date, but it doesn't fit! I'm too fucking fat.” John spits out the word like it's the most disgusting poison in the world. “A-And you brought me flowers and you're dressed up all fancy in a suit. I don't deserve you.”

“John…” Dave starts but John cuts him off.

“Don't you dare. I know what I am.” 

“What? My incredibly wonderful boyfriend?” Dave says. John freezes in his tracks, wide eyed and mouth agape.

“No…I...Dave…” He stutters out, cheeks red from his blush as well as his tears. He wipes the tears away furiously, grinning a little. “Fuck you can't just  _ say _ stuff like that to me.”

“The truth?” Dave draws him into a deeper hug, kissing the top of his head. “Come on, you down for the restaurant? They have chocolate and cheese fountains like on every table.”

“I know Dave, I went there with you to make the booking.” John manages a smile, eyes still downcast. “It looked really nice…”

Dave rubs John's back soothingly, resting his chin on John's head and pulling him closer. “It'll be alright, I promise. You only have your period for a week right? Dammit, I should've bought you chocolates and not flowers.”

John sobs out a laugh. “Yeah, only a week. But this one is particularly painful...I don't know if I can do the restaurant…” John whispers, ashamed. “I'm so, so sorry. I know how much it meant and how long we've waited for a reservation…”

“That's alright John, another time.” Dave is, of course, disappointed by this turn of events. But he doesn't let it show. He knows how much this meant to John, so it must mean John is in real pain right now. “But I still want to make our first anniversary memorable.”

“I'm sorry about the restaurant. I really wanted to go…” John mumbles.

“Don't be.” Dave says fiercely. “I'll make this night special I promise. I'll...dig something sweet and chocolatey out of the pantry and make you hot chocolate and we can watch your favorite movies.”

John's eyes light up, shining brilliantly against his teary cheeks. But then they dim again, as if in realisation. “I...I don't think I can make it downstairs. I'm sorry.”

“That's fine, I've got a plan.” 

 

With a smirk, Dave bundles John up in his blankets and lifts him up in the air, bridal style.

“Dave!” John squawks, squirming around in his blanket cocoon. “Put me down!”

“Stop wiggling John! You'll make me drop you!” Dave chuckles. 

John stills, glaring up at him. “Just because I can't move, doesn't mean you have to pick me up.”

“Do you want to walk to the couch yourself?” Dave raises an eyebrow.

“God no, but...you'll insist on carrying me no matter what I say won't you?” John sighs, and resigns himself by snuggling into Dave's arms.

“Yup.” Dave pops the ‘p’. He spins around, wobbling a little under John's weight. He's a bit heavier than Dave expected, but that's fine. Slowly, taking extra care not to drop John, Dave makes his way down to the couch. Of course the journey isn't effortless, and there's a lot of complaining from John (especially down the stairs), but they get there eventually.

Mittens is occupying the couch, taking up half its space despite her tiny form. Dave sets down John on the half that's cat-free, wrapping him up even further in blankets.

“Dave? John? What's wrong? Why aren't you going to the restaurant?” Dad appears from out of his study, a concerned look on his face.

“I…” John meets his father's eyes, ashamed. “I've got a really, really bad period Dad. I can hardly walk…”

“Oh John…” Dad's face crumples into deep concern and worry. “Why didn't you tell me? You know what? No matter. I'll grab you some aspirin.”

“You don't have to Dad.” John says, but Dad waves him off, already making his way to the kitchen.

“Nonsense. You can hardly walk remember? I heard Dave carrying you down here. You must be feeling really bad.” Dad's voice becomes a little muffled as he enters the kitchen. His words are accompanied by the sound of drawers opening and the clinking of glass and opening of plastic packaging.

“Oh yeah, I gotta make you a hot chocolate!” Dave remembers his promise. “It'll wash down the aspirin taste.”

John lets out a bark of laughter, startling Mittens out of her slumber. “Oh no! Come here baby.” To the best of his ability, John opens up his arms to let Mittens come up to him. Mittens crawls onto John's stomach, just as nestled in the blankets as her human.

“Hey I'm going to make you a hot chocolate now.” Dave announces. John just reaches towards him with his hands, making grabby grabby motions. “What. What do you want?” Dave asks, worried. John continues the motions, puckering his lips up slightly. “Oooooh, you want a kiss.”

Dave leans forward and obliges, kissing him sweetly and chastely on the lips. “You're so demanding.” He sighs.

“You love me.” John hums contentedly, grinning lazily.

“I do, yes.” Dave can't keep the smile off his face as he heads into the kitchen.

 

Dad is already in there, stirring the aspirin into a glass of water to help it dissolve. He looks up when Dave enters. “Hello again Dave.”

“Oh hi Mr E, I'm just making a cup of hot chocolate for John.” Dave says, making a beeline for the cupboard.

“Ah yes, the infamous hot chocolate during the period trick. I know all about that. You know where the chocolate powder is right?” Dad asks, gesturing towards the pantry. At the same time, he moves towards the upper cupboard, pulling out a little pillow embroidered with musical notes.

“Of course I do, I've had hot chocolate here before.” Dave says, pulling the chocolate powder out of the pantry and beginning to make preparations. He turns the stove on, filling up a saucepan with milk. He then pulls out two mugs (John's favourite-the Ghostbusters one, and a simple red one for himself) and fills them partway with chocolate powder.

“I'm glad he has you Dave.” Dad says, completely out of the blue, while putting the pillow in the microwave. “You're good for him.”

“What do you mean?” Dave frowns, looking up from the saucepan of milk.

“I do try not to eavesdrop or intrude on my children's personal space, but sometimes he says things…” Dad shakes his head, sadness in his eyes. “He does things and I get so worried. I know he hates himself so much, but he hides it away where he thinks I can't see. Of course I can see, I'm his father. I love him, I've known that from before I even held his tiny baby body in my arms for the first time. Despite that, he still doesn't trust me, however clear I make my love and pride for him show. But you...he trusts you with those little insecurities.”

“What? No, I've never seen him like this before.” Dave interrupts. “If I'm to be completely honest, he's always the one who comforts me.”

“Dave, I have seen the two of you grow up together. I've seen first hand how much you've done for John, and how much he loves you in return.” Dad continues on, shaking off Dave's concerns so casually. “You're good for him, you treat him right. You always have. Look at you, right now. You had a date booked at the best restaurant in town. Then John felt sick and you booked it off immediately, instead opting for his comfort over yours and going regardless.”

“Movies and hot chocolate together is just as good.” Dave protests. “And he's sick, so bad he can't walk, what am I supposed to do?”

“I'm glad you're dating my son.” Dad says, finally. “You treat him so well, and he loves you so much. You've always been like a son to me, and I'm just as proud of you as I am my own children.”

Dave wipes away the tears from his eyes, focusing instead on pouring the now boiling saucepan of milk into two mugs. “Thanks…” He whispers out as he grabs the two mugs, readying them to take outside.

“Dave?” Dad asks Dave's retreating back. Dave spins around, force spilling a little hot chocolate on the floor. Dad sighs exasperatedly but shuffles over, popping two marshmallows into their cups. “You two have fun. I've got the aspirin and heat pillow, but there's some special chocolate that I hide specifically for their periods that I'll bring out a little later.”

“Alright...Thanks.” Dave only hopes his relieved smile is enough for Dad to get how thankful he is. 

 

Dave carries out the hot chocolate for John, whose dazedly watching TV, still bundled up in blankets. By the way John reacts to the hot chocolate, Dave thinks that he'd done some heroic act like blow up the Death Star or something, instead of just make him a hot chocolate. Dave then sets up the DVD player before settling down on the couch. John promptly shuffles around to press close.

Dave smiles, but takes extra care in the hug, remembering both Mitten’s claws and Dad's words. Is John really that bad? Does John hate himself and has just never told Dave despite their long friendship? Dave hopes not. He knows he can't cure everything, but he can sure try.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, Jaderose next chapter seeing as I've focused tons on Johndave. Then I'll get back to the uhhh...'plot' of this fic.  
> As always, enjoy, and tell me what you thought in the comments below!


	28. 17 Years Old. Gardens.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose and Jade go on a date to the local Botanical Gardens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy this one! It's very sweet and very gay I love them.  
> As always, tell me what you thought in the comments below!

Botanical Gardens are both excellent for the preservation of nature, as well as the perfect place to take your plant-loving girlfriend on a date. It's Jade's absolute favourite place in the world, and Rose can see why.

It's a pretty big garden, with lots of different walks through different flowered and shaded paths. Jade swears she still hasn't seen everything yet, despite her many, many times coming here. It always has a good place to settle down for a picnic, be it by the pond, in the heather gardens, the rose gardens or anywhere really. It's free entry, so that makes it extra good for a date.

 

Jade swings her and Rose's hand as they walk down a path lined with daffodils, a skip in her step. In Jade's free hand is the picnic basket, swinging the opposite way from her other hand.

“It's the perfect weather for a picnic, don't you think?” Jade beams at her girlfriend. Rose, who has never particularly been an outdoors person, simply nods. “That sky is so blue. And the daffodils look really nice this time of year.”

“They're as bright and sunny as the sun in the sky.” Rose agrees.

“I think that spot, under the oak tree would be nice for a picnic, don't you think?” Jade points out a relatively grassy, shaded area surrounded by daffodils. There appears to be enough space to lay down a picnic blanket without squashing anything.

“It looks lovely Jade.” Rose compliments her girlfriend on her choice of picnic area.

“Yeah, and we even get a super nice view of the mountains!” Jade chirps, skipping ahead in order to lay down the picnic blanket. 

Stretched out on the grass, the red fabric stands out against the green of the grass. Jade lays down the picnic basket, plonking herself down beside it in order to rummage through it easier. Rose sits beside her, brushing down her skirt. Rummaging around in the picnic basket, Jade pulls out two plastic plates and plastic cups, then a bottle of grape soda and two sandwiches.

“This is lunch, but I have treats for later in there.” Jade points out, already taking a huge bite of her cheese and salami sandwich. 

“What kind of treats?” Rose asks, pouring herself, than Jade a cup of grape soda. Rose has always been a massive tea drinker, but she will drink the occasional soda. Sometimes, she grabs some alcohol out of her mom's liquor cabinet and drinks that. It's been happening a little more than Jade is comfortable with lately, but she's just worrying too much. It's fine, it helps with the stress.

“Oh! Some vanilla cupcakes and two chocolate bars.” Jade replies, chewing rapidly.

“Sweetie, please don't talk with your mouth full…” Rose wrinkles up her nose in disgust.

Jade pokes her tongue out in reply, treating Rose to the disgusting sight of all the mashed up food on her tongue.

“That's disgusting.”

“You love me.” Jade beams, stating the very obvious. By now, she's three quarters of the way through her sandwich. She's feeling pretty hungry.

“Well yes, I do. Even though you poke your tongue out at me and spray half-chewed food all over me.” Rose sighs, smiling softly while picking at her own cheese and salami sandwich.

“Oh sorry Rose, I didn't mean to spray my food all over you!” Jade gasps, a sad expression on her face. Rose doesn't doubt the sincerity of that statement, except for the fact that Jade sprays food all over her again, accident or otherwise. Rose just sighs.

Jade devours the rest of her sandwich and drains the rest of her cup while Rose only manages to get halfway through. Jade's always been a fast eater, especially when she's hungry. So, done with her meal, Jade lies down on her back, staring up at the sky through the leaves of the oak tree. If she just closes her eyes and opens her ears and listens, she can hear the tweetings of the birds and the scurrying of all the furry little critters living in the surrounding area. She longs to join them. It would be nice to live in the Botanical Gardens; bathing in the pond, eating from the herb garden and the fruit orchard, sleeping in a bed of heather...it sounds so wonderful.

“Jade, I can see what you're thinking by your facial expressions. Don't.” Rose's voice snaps Jade out of her daydream. She sits up, looking at Rose with a disgruntled expression.

“But Roooose, it'll be fun! We could live together here. We'd swim in the pond, climb the trees, make friends with the animals here and explore every inch of this place!”

“We can explore it without living here Jade. There is free admission after all.” Rose sighs. Of course she'd love to live with Jade in the future, but not in a Botanical Garden. It's beautiful here, but no. She'd rather live in an actual house.

“But that's not the same! I want to be here every day!” Jade whines, pouting. 

“Well then, you could get a job here? Use the capitalist system against them and get a job you love.” Rose suggests, voicing an idea just formed in her mind. Jade's eyes immediately light up and she leans forward to press a messy kiss against Rose's forehead.

“Rose you're a genius! An absolute genius! As soon as we finish our date, I'm applying!” Then a wave of guilt hits Jade and she looks at Rose with an apologetic look. “If you don't mind...this  _ is _ a date after all.”

Rose, still a little shocked (in a good way) from being called a genius and being kissed by her girlfriend doesn't mind. “Jade I don't care, as long as you're happy. And from what you've been saying, that job at Walmart hasn't been making you happy.”

“Thanks. For the idea and for letting me hand in my resume during our date...” Jade smiles, grasping Rose's hand in her own.

“What kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't?” Rose asks. The question, as always, is rhetorical.

“A shitty one.” Jade answers regardless of whether Rose intended for it to be answered or not. By now, Rose has finished her lunch. Both girls eyes drift over to the basket, wondering about the sweet treats inside. Jade breaks the tension, reaching inside the picnic basket in order to pull out two vanilla cupcakes.

“Oh, thanks Jade.” Rose smiles shyly taking the cupcake and taking a delicate bite, trying to avoid smearing her lipstick.

“You're welcome!” Jade chirps back, devouring her own cupcake in a few bites. “I hope you liked them! I've been hanging out with Jane a bit recently because she comes over to see Jake a lot but he's always at Dirk’s, and we made these cupcakes together!”

“They are pretty good.” Rose nods, chewing away. “Jane is a very talented baker. When she comes to hang out with Roxy, they always bake things together and I get the leftovers.”

“Oh I am sooo jealous!” Jade groans, shifting in her seat. “Although I guess I can't really complain now can I?”

“Not really. I think they use me as a test subject sometimes, to test out new recipes.” Rose muses, finishing her cupcake and laying down a little bit.

“They do the same thing to me! But hey, I'm not complaining! If being a guinea pig means free cake, I'm in.” Jade laughs, a melodic sound that sounds like heaven to Rose's ears. 

 

Rose, blushing, rolls over on the blanket so now she has her back to Jade and her front to the daffodils. Looking at the flowers surrounding her, she can definitely see why Jade loves gardening so much. She focuses her gaze of a particular daffodil. This one looks like all the others, the same yellow and orange colouring, but somehow this bright sunny colour reminds her of Jade. Something about the bright colours, the way it stands only slightly hunched on its stem or the way it's so taller than the others reminds her of Jade.

With one swift movement, she plucks it out of the ground and sits up, tucking it in Jade's hair. “Because you're as radiant as the sun.”

Jade flushes darkly, smile wobbly and flattered. With little hesitation, Jade plucks another daffodil from the dirt, weaving it through Rose's hair. “And you're even more beautiful than that.”

With wide smiles and flushed faces, the two girls focus on the view stretched out ahead of them. They've been dating for years now, but still they like to share silly flirtations. Jade probably shouldn't hand her resume into the Botanical Gardens with a flower with still roots attached in her hair, but she's always loved living in the moment.


	29. 17 Years Old. Mother Forgive Me.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just some fun times, fun for the whole family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning, this chapter contains pretty bad abuse so if you're sensitive to that, just be careful okay?

Bunk beds are either loved or hated. No one has a neutral opinion on bunk beds. Dave and Dirk Strider both think bunk beds are super cool, but they have to think that because that's all they've had all their life.

Sharing a bunk bed with your twin brother is fine and all, but it grows out after a while. Dave and Dirk have no choice in the matter. Sometimes they wish they didn't have to share a room, especially such a small one, but again they have no choice in the matter.

The brothers, despite their arguments, still get along. They're drawn together by the knowledge that they're in this shitty living condition together, although neither of them voice it aloud.

 

Dave's top bunk is personalised with a photo wall, all photos taken by yours truly. The red-striped covers are bunched around Dave's true form, hiding everything except his beak slightly poking out of the covers. Bartholomew the First, Dave's favourite crow, is perched on Dave's pillow, pecking away at some birdseed.

Dirk is lying below, typing away on his phone. He's multitasking, texting while playing an app on his phone. His own bunk is much plainer than his brothers, but all his stuff is kept in his bedside table and stuck up around the room. 

“Who you texting?” Dave asks, breaking the silence between the brothers. One of his hands creep out from the covers in order to pat Bartholomew, who happily allows Dave to stroke his feathers.

“None of your business.” Comes Dirk’s annoyed reply. His brother is way too nosey for his own good. Dirk glares at the mattress above, hoping Dave feels it.

“Alright geez, just trying to make conversation.” Dave rolls his eyes, grumbling. His brother needs to lighten the fuck up sometimes. “You should get that stick out of your ass.”

“You should treat your older brother with some fucking respect.” Dirk replies, scowling. His phone buzzes with a text from Jake, which he quickly pauses his game to reply to.

“We're fucking twins, we’re the same age.” Dave shoots back. It's just like Dirk to be that up himself. His own phone is off and underneath his pillow.

“Yeah, but I came out first.” Dirk just shrugs. “So that makes me older.”

“It also apparently makes you a conceited asshole.” Dave smirks, smirking even harder when a pillow flies up from below and hits him on the back. He lets out a bark of laughter, twisting out of his covers in order to throw the pillow back.

 

As soon as he does this however, he reveals his true form to the light. Dirk doesn't mind too much, but seeing that scaled arm and those talons make him fear for his brothers safety. Their father doesn't like Dave's true form.

As if on cue, their father bursts into the room.

“What the fuck are you doing!?” He screams. Immediately the already too-small room feels even smaller. Dirk switches off his phone and clutches it to his chest. Dave freezes, eyes wide with terror.

“I-I-I was just s-saving my energy.” Dave stutters out, shrinking back.

Their father looms over Dave, metaphorically choking him with his very presence.”Change back.” That was an order, not a question.

“B-But I need to conserve my energy! It's not healthy to-” Dave starts, stammering. 

But their father cuts him off quite forcefully. He grabs Dave by the wrist and wrenches him off his bed. Dave's wings flap wildly, slowing his descent as he stumbles onto the floor. He makes a half-hearted attempt to escape from his father's grasp but he knows it's hopeless. Dave glances at Dirk, who shares a mournful, sorrowful look with him.

Bartholomew, in a fury Dave has never seen before, swoops down onto Dave's father, claws extended. His attack is met with loud swearing. Dave's father loosens his grip for a millisecond. Dave takes the opportunity to escape from his father's grasp. 

“Bloody stupid animal!” Dave's father yells, finally managing to throw off Bartholomew. Bartholomew hits the wall with a thud. 

“No!” Dave gasps, rushing forward to his crow. But his father stops him. Once again, Dave is trapped in his father's grip. Dave's father lifts him up by the wrist, so they're both eye to eye.

“Shift back.” He spits out, looking at his son as if he's the most disgusting thing in the world.

“But--”

“No buts, do it. Now.” That wasn't a request, it was an order.

Resigned, Dave shifts back. Wings and tail shrink back into nothingness. Scales, fur and feathers smooth out into pale human skin. A beak shrinks into a nose and mouth. Ears move down and shift until they are resting on the sides of a perfectly normal human face.

“There, now you look much better. Now you must apologize.”

“No he doesn't!” Dirk cries, still in his position on the bed. Something about him seems different. He's stood up for Dave before, but this time he seems different. “He needs rest from you forcing him to shift all the time! He doesn't need to apologize for a natural process!”

Dirk’s speech is, like always, ignored. At least he tried.

With only little resistance, Dave is dragged out of the room by his wrist. Dirk tries to follow but the door is slammed shut in his face. Both brothers know exactly where their father is taking Dave. This has happened so many times before.

As Dave is dragged down the corridor, John's words about his dad being abusive rings in his mind. By now Dave has fully accepted the fact that his father is abusive. He's known this for several years. This routine goes on and on, but no matter how much his father hurts him, Dave can't really bring himself to hate him.

Dave is broken out of his reverie abruptly when he is suddenly shoved forward. He sags to the floor, form bowed in front of a small altar.

 

The candles are lit, as always, and they illuminate  _ her _ picture. In a gilded photo frame, surrounded by silk and candles, is a photo of his mother. She's smiling, eyes bright as they peer joyously into the camera. Her long grey hair tumbles down her back, framing her slender face. In this moment captured in the camera, she looks like an angel sent from heaven.

Her name was Elizabeth, and according to his father, she was kind, radiant, beautiful and his soul mate. And Dave was the one that killed her.

“Apologize.” His father spits out.

“I-I'm sorry…” Dave hides his head in shame. He wills back the tears he feels welling in his eyes.

“You should be. She died because of you. You drained all her energy with that hideous form of yours. So don't you dare parade it around like it's something to be proud of.”

“I'm sorry! I didn't mean to! I'm so, so sorry…” Dave sobs, trying to no avail to hold back his tears. He's never even met his mother, but he wishes he had. He doesn't know what she was like, but he likes to think she loved him with her whole heart.

“Good. Remember that next time you ‘need to recharge’.”

With that, his father disappears down the corridor, leaving behind his son a sobbing mess.

When he told John his father did this, John was horrified. John always reassures him that he didn't murder his mother, and his true form is worthy of love. Dave knows it's true but it's incredibly hard to believe when he's kneeling in front of his mother's altar, sobbing his heart out. It's hard to believe that none of this is his fault. Or sometimes, if she'd love him too. Because if she was in love with his father, what does that make him?

The soft touch of a hand on his shoulder brings Dave out of his thoughts. It's Dirk, a rare, sympathetic expression on his face.

“I'm sorry I couldn't stand up to him and protect you. I'm a pathetic excuse for a big brother.” 

“It's okay.” Dave replies sullenly, only sparing Dirk a quick glance before turning back to stare at the portrait of his mother.

But it's not okay. It'll never be okay. No matter how much he says it is. As long as he's here, living with his father, he'll never be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed, regardless of the um...content. I enjoyed writing it.
> 
> Also if Dave's mum was still alive she would've kicked his dad's ass to the kurb long ago and raised her sons right amen


	30. 18 Years Old. Major Pain in the Ass.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place over the course of 8 months, as Dave works through his Senior Major Artwork.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I don't know if Americans have major works or not, but they do now.  
> This chapter kind of stems from the fact I have two major works (a software one and an art one) due at the end of august/3rd September respectively and I've only really just started? It shouldnt be too hard bc I'm a better artist than author but im still dying

Art class is definitely the chillest of all Dave's classes. Film class is next chillest, but his other classes (Advanced Maths, Advanced English, Modern History and Ancient History) are all piling on the homework and they're pretty stressful.

Art gives him a chance to kick back and relax, only really having to worry about his major. He already has his major work figured out (an oil painting of his webcomic Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff. It's ironic, as so much expense is paid on such a shit artwork), but his art teacher does not like his idea. He says it's a waste of paint, canvas and most of all, Dave's talent.

 

Dave is forbidden from using the oil paint until he gets out a concrete design that his art teacher agrees with. His teacher has denied every single design so far, and it's getting a little infuriating. He's pretty much exhausted all possible concepts, so he's stuck twirling a pencil in his fingers, staring down at the blank page of his art diary in front of him. 

Suddenly, his vision is plunged into darkness as two hands press themselves against his eyes. “Guess who?”

“John, you know Mr J only lets you in here during study if you don't distract anyone, and what are you doing?” Dave reaches up and takes John's hands off his face.

“Oh come on!” John pouts, drawing up a stool and plonking down on it. “I'm not distracting you that badly!”

“Yes you are, you're distracting me from doing my work.” Dave points at his art diary.

“What work?” John asks cynically, squinting down at the blank page in front of Dave.

“I'm working!” Dave protests. He flicks back through the pages, showing John all his rejected concepts. “See?”

“Oh wow Dave, that's um...great.” John avoids Dave's eyes, instead turning to his bag. He pulls out his pencil case and Biology book, burying his head in that.

“You hate them.”

“Wha-no!” John protests, embarrassed to be called out. “I just....uh...think it's unusual is all. What are you going to do?”

“I'm going to paint a biblical-esque oil painting of Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff.” Dave announces. John winces, looking at his drawing with worry. “You do hate it.”

“Well…” John bites his lip, face twisted into a grimace. “It's not that I hate it but...no offence, your idea is kind of dumb. Why don't you do portraiture? You're really good at that.”

“John, that's so overdone it's hilarious. You don't know how many people do portraits for their majors. I'm competing against the state, I have to be original.” Dave looks down at the blank page in a sort of defeated way. John feels pretty bad, he didn't mean to hurt Dave's feelings!

“Well do something different than all of them! Put your own, Davey spin on it.” John suggests. “You're really good at putting unique twists on ordinary things.”

“John has a point Dave.” Mr J interrupts, coming to a stop in front of Dave's table. As always, he's using any excuse to try and get Dave to switch up his major. Dave finds he doesn't mind as much today. “Might I suggest a series of portraits of those you like most in the world, with the canvases being made up of something that reminds you of them?”

“Oh Dave! That sounds good!” John turns to Dave, giving him a big smile. “You can do Dirk with a canvas of like...metal and felt and stuff.”

“You're assuming I'm even doing that for my major.” Dave raises an eyebrow. But if he's honest with himself, his idea before wasn't flowing too well with him. This new idea sounds a lot better, especially with John's support. Maybe he should try it out, just a concept.

“Oh, sorry Dave!” John apologizes,  despite nothing being his fault. “I just kinda assumed. You don't have to if you don't want to.”

“I'd rather you did.” Mr J says bluntly. Then, another student grabs his attention and he's off, promising Dave to check back up on him.

“I'll do a concept, but just to fill up my art diary. I am having trouble with my actual major and trying something different might help.” Dave grabs his pencil and, squinting at John, begins to draw.

 

Drawing John is calming in a way. It allows Dave to look at all the fine details of his boyfriend in order to illustrate them on paper. John is always flattered when Dave draws him, which is always a bonus. 

John just studies as Dave draws him, but his eyes keep darting back to look at Dave before darting away again, blush deepening on his cheeks. Dave doesn't really know why, it's just a few basic sketches drawn as rushed as possible in order to get John's form down. Not that Dave is unfamiliar with it.

Dave is so caught up in his drawing, head swirling with ideas, that he almost doesn't hear the bell. Luckily John is there for him, like always. 

“Come on Dave, we've got English together!” John's stuff is already packed up, but he waits patiently for Dave to pack up. 

“Oh please don't remind me. I've had enough of The fucking Tempest.” Dave grumbles, shoving his stuff forcefully in his bag. 

“Me too, don't worry. Prospero can suck my dick.” John laughs, grabbing Dave's hand in order to walk to their next class.

Dave squeezes John's hand, mind still swirling with ideas. With some revision to the original idea, Dave thinks he may have a new, better major work. Although nothing can truly beat the pure genius of Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff, it will have to go unappreciated, for now.

 

☆☆☆

 

“Are you sure you're alright Dave?” John calls out to Dave, seated awkwardly on a plastic stool. Dave is painting John's portrait for his major, but he's been grumbling in frustration for about half an hour now. John's kind of hungry by now, and his butt is sore after sitting on it for over an hour.

“I'm fine John, just keep sitting the way you are.” Dave glances over at John for the umpteenth time this afternoon. 

“Easy for you to say.” John sighs, shifting a little bit. “You haven't been sitting in the same position for an hour.”

“Sorry! I'm nearly done the sketch. It's just taking me a while because writing on CDs is hard.” Dave gives John a sympathetic look.

“Oh, it's fine. I'm doing this for you, remember? I don't mind too much, as long as you keep your promise of buying me food after.” John gives Dave one of his signature grins before his voice takes a more serious note. “But if the pencil doesn't stick to the CD-canvas, what's it going to do to the paint?”

“Don't worry about that, Mr J gave me a special sealant. I spray it on the CDs when I'm ready to paint, and again when I'm done.” Dave reassures him, brushing off John's concerns. “I've already put down a coat but apparently it doesn't work with pencil.”

“That's good…” John trails off, swinging his legs aimlessly. Modelling for Dave's portrait is really boring, but he'll do it. Dave deserves all the marks for his art. All of them.

“Okay, you can move now, I'm finished the sketch.” Before Dave's sentence is complete, John is off the chair and by his side, staring at the portrait.

“Whoa! That looks amazing!” John exclaims. He leans forward and presses a kiss to Dave's cheek. “You're really talented Dave.”

“I haven't started painting yet.” Dave chuckles, picking up his paint tin and opening it. Long, slender fingers dart around before picking up a golden brown and an ivory black. Squirting a generous amount of golden brown, a dash of the ivory black, Dave mixes the two paints together. “I'm starting with your skin. The shadows and darker bits first, as per painting rule 101.”

John watches as Dave squints and dashes on paint here and there. John can't really see how the blobs of paint are supposed to be him, but as Dave goes and adds more dark colours, the painting begins to transform into something recognizable.

As always Dave's talent is amazing. Painting-John seems truly alive, despite the canvas of CDs. John loves seeing Dave like this, so dedicated to one thing. The way his eyes narrow behind his shades, and his lips part to allow his tongue to poke out. Dave is so focused that John could probably draw all over his face in sharpie and Dave wouldn't even notice. Not that John's done that before...okay, he has.

While John is admiring the artist as he does his work, Dave is determined to finish his art this afternoon. He's got a whole sleepover at John's to do this, but he also promised his boyfriend food afterwards. Although it's several months away, the due date looms above him ominously, like a benevolent overlord over its people.

“Daaaave~” John's whine brings Dave out of his determined, creative state. “Sorry to distract you, but you promised me food? Come on, let's go get food, you need a break.”

“...I suppose you're right.” Dave sighs, resigned. He would like to finish this, but waiting for all the paint to dry is going to take forever. John's right, he does need a break, even if he doesn't want one. “Come on, let's go.”

Dave sets his paint, brushes and pallet brushes down, getting up in order to take John's hand instead.

“Dave, it looks really good so far.” John beams. “You'll do really well for your major for sure!”

“Thanks John. I love you.”

“I love you too.”

 

☆☆☆

 

“You're telling me that you want to  _ what _ ?” Dirk raises an eyebrow at Dave, looking up from his phone.

“I'm going to paint you for my art major, whether you like it or not.” Dave repeats his statement from earlier, staring his brother down.

“Well aren't I lucky.” Dirk rolls his eyes. “When are you planning to do it?”

“Now.” Dave points at his pre-prepared art equipment, as well as the canvas. For Dirk’s portrait, it's orange felt on the back of a sheet of tin.

Dirk lets out an exasperated groan, exaggeratedly getting up from his bed. “You're killing me baby brother.”

“I'm 18, I'm not a baby!” Dave protests, huffing in annoyance as Dirk makes his way over to the stool placed in the middle of the room.

“So how do you want me to pose?” Dirk asks, staring down at the stool with a deadpan look on his face.

“Just naturally. As you would everyday.” Dave says dismissively, looking down at his canvas. When he looks up again, Dirk is sprawled along the floor, head resting in his hands, a cocky smirk on his face. “Sitting on the stool!”

“Ugh fine.” Dirk huffs and picks himself up off the ground to sit on the stool. He crosses his legs and puts his hands on his lap before turning to Dave. “Better?”

“Much, thank you.” Dave gives a sigh of relief. His brother can be...difficult at times and Dave's glad he’s cooperating.

 

The two brothers drift into a silence, the only sound being the scratching of Dave's pencil on felt. Dave doesn't care, he needs complete concentration. No distractions.

“I'm sure if mom were here, she'd be proud of you.” Dirk breaks the silence, face unusually open.

Dave freezes, pencil hovering in midair. 

“I've seen some of your work, including your finished portrait of John. It's incredible Dave.” Dirk continues on, ignoring his brothers shocked face. Where's all this honesty coming from? “We don't talk much, but you really captured his...I'll just say his essence.”

“Yeah well I've known him for twelve years, so I know that essence better than anything.” Dave finally manages to reply, humbling Dirk's words.

“Don't sell yourself short Dave. You've got true artistic talent, and you've worked hard for it. It shows.” Dirk replies. “If mom could see you now, she'd be very proud.”

“I...yeah, thanks Dirk.” Dave flushes. He's not used to these sorts of compliments from his brother and it's highly embarrassing.

“I'm proud of you, little brother.” Dirk says. Then, just like that, all the honesty in his face is replaced with his mask of indifference again.

“We're twins, but thanks.” Dave doesn't know where all this came from, but he's glad it happened. His brother is kind of an asshole who is emotionally constipated all the time, but sometimes his true self shines through. “It means a lot.”

 

☆☆☆

 

“I'm so flattered you decided to paint me David, I was under the impression you were going to do that Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff thing.” Rose hums in that smug, knowing voice of hers. She absentmindedly taps her fingers against her thigh, the only outside hint in her boredom of being painted. It is very flattering and all, but she can't move for the next...who knows how long. Dave is taking a while.

“Well, John made me change my mind. He didn't like my idea.” Dave sighs, clutching his chest in an over dramatic sadness.

“I wonder why.” Rose chuckles, amused.

“You just don't understand the complex, deep back story behind Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff.” Dave huffs, insulted.

“Maybe so, but I do understand why you write it.” Rose starts. Dave takes a deep breath. He can feel the psychoanalysis coming. “You see, your ‘genius’ is a reflection of your troubled mind.”

“Oh God, here we go.” Dave rolls his eyes. He's heard this spiel a million times at least.

“The stairs represent your self-hatred and the ‘downward spiral’ so to say, of your self-esteem.” Rose continues explaining, ignoring Dave's obvious annoyance. In fact, that's probably why she presses on.

“Rose please, you're distracting the artist.” Dave quips, focussing on his canvas. Wool is very hard to draw on accurately.

“And you're bullying the talent.” Rose quips back, just as fast.

“Who said I was bullying you, or that you were the talent.” Dave raises an eyebrow.

“Who is your talent then, your muse?” Rose asks, cocking her head. “It obviously isn't me. Is it John?” Her delighted smile grows at Dave's embarrassed expression. “It  _ is _ .”

“Shut up, Jade would probably be your muse too if you were an artist.”

“Well I have knitted her a vast array of items.” Rose hums, expression thoughtful. 

“Exactly.” Dave huffs. He pauses, before asking her a question. “How are you and Jade going anyway?” 

“Oh…” Rose smiles wistfully, looking away. “We're going really well. We're looking at different colleges we want to apply for, and where to live.”

“Oh yeah! Me and John are doing the same thing at the moment. I'm looking at the College of Film and the Arts and John's looking at the Institute of Medicine. And they're in the same city. If we're really lucky, we'll both get in and get to live together.” Dave's eyes get a faraway look as he talks about his future plans.

“Oh, you're looking at those colleges? What a coincidence it is that Jade and I are looking at this one university in the same city.” Rose hums again, looking smug. But when doesn't she look smug?

“What ones.” Dave says, suddenly looking a mixture of concerned and intrigued.

“University of Sciences. I'm going for a psychology degree and Jade's going for astro-physics.” 

“Well good luck with that, I've heard that place is really prestigious and picky with its students.”

“I hope Jade gets in. She's been studying so hard for it for years. She needs it.” Rose smiles wistfully. “Same with John. And....yourself. But you are quite good with art so I wouldn't be too worried if I were you..”

“Thanks Rose.” Dave mumbles, suddenly avoiding Rose's violet stare.

“You're welcome.” Rose replies, shifting on the stool uncomfortably. “If you could, could you please hurry up? I'm getting very sore here.”

“I'm doing my best.” Dave huffs again. He doesn't mind too much, he knows Rose is just naturally pushy like that. He's grateful for her words, despite her usual scathing tone.

 

☆☆☆

 

“Wow Dave, you've made me look really good!” Jade beams, stretching her arms well above her head in excitement. “You're going to ace your major for sure.”

“Thanks Jade.” Dave sighs, relieved to have finally, after months of work, finished his major.

Rested in front of the two is Dave's completed portrait of Jade. It still has to dry properly before it can join the rest of the series, but Dave's finally done!

“You've probably heard this a lot, but you've got a ton of talent Dave.”

“Surprisingly, I  _ have _ heard that a lot.” Dave chuckles. Not only has he heard it from John, Rose and Dirk, but other people too. Mr J even complimented him, which is pretty rare.

“It shouldn't be a surprise!” Jade huffs, hands curling into fists. “If you get anything less than 90%, I'm going to march right on into the judges office and give them a piece of my mind!”

“That's extortion Jade, please don't do that.” Dave balks, waving his hands in front of his face.

“Don't worry, that was a joke.” Jade chuckles, punching Dave lightly on the shoulder. “We’d probably all go and threaten the judges together--John, Rose and myself.”

“Again, that's extortion and illegal.” Dave adds, still pleased as punch at Jade's words.

Then, Jade scoops him up in a hug, squeezing him tightly. “But I'm proud of you Dave. You'll do brilliant with your major.”

“Thanks Jade.” Dave replies, even more flattered now. Why is everyone being so nice to him lately? Not that he's complaining, but it makes him think he's dying or something. “And you'll do well with your finals and stuff too.”

Jade laughs, releasing Dave from the hug. “Yeah I've pretty much got that in the bag.”

“But thank you, so much, for being my model.” Dave smiles genuinely. “Really, that means a lot.”

“Thank you for drawing me!” Jade beams. “Honestly and truly. You'll do really well in your major.”

“Let's hope so…” Dave sighs, looking at his portrait of Jade. He's finally finished, months of hard work finally leading up to this.

 

☆☆☆

 

“Remember guys, the due date of your majors is tomorrow! You can work until 3pm, but after that, you'd better be done because I'm collecting them anyway.” Mr J’s voice booms across the classroom, inciting fear in his students. Most grumble, stressedly working on their majors. Dave is not one of these students.

Dave strolls confidently into the classroom, carrying one of his portraits under his arm. He's followed closely by John--also carrying a portrait under his arm--who is using his study period and car to help Dave sort out his major.

Dave puts down his portrait next to the other two, taking the one from John to line them up on the wall.

The canvases give the portraits themselves a unique edge against the others in the room. The paintings look straight out of the romantic era, all softly lit and hazy. They are of course, a bit bumpy from the uneven canvases, but they're as smooth as Dave can get them.

“You're going to do brilliantly.” John takes his hand, smiling softly up at him. “You'll pass with flying colours.”

“Thanks John.” Dave replies. “You've always been my biggest supporter.”

“That's because you're worth it! And what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't support you?” John asks before answering his own question. “A shitty one.”

“Ah Dave, handing in your work early? That's very unlike you.” Mr J interrupts, standing next to Dave, looking down at his paintings. John huffs out a bark of laughter at his boyfriends expense.

“Haha, yeah.” Dave laughs awkwardly, rubbing his arm sheepishly.

“Are you glad that you stuck with this idea and ditched your other one.” Mr J continues. 

“Yeeeeah.” Dave winces. “I like this one, but the other one might’ve been nice.”

“No Dave.” John laughs, shaking his head. “This is much better.”

Dave opens his mouth to protest but is interrupted by Mr J. Like always. “I'll leave you two at it. I have other students to attend to.”

With Mr J gone, Dave can get back to what he was going to say. “I still kind of want to do my original idea though. As a personal thing. I have the original canvas I was going to use and some left over oil paints.”

“Then do it!” John exclaims cheerfully, although his lips flatten and he eyes Dave. “If your heart is  _ that _ set on it.”

“Why thanks for the vote of confidence.” Dave says dryly, rolling his eyes.

“You're welcome, sweetcheeks.” John replies, the pet name very dry and sarcastic on his tongue.

Dave sighs, turning to his four portraits and squeezing John's hand tightly. It's finally over, all that work. It's all led up to this. All he has to do now is wait.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Please comment down below if you did so I know what I'm doing right/wrong!


	31. 18 Years Old. University Letters.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John gets his University Letter in the mail.

“Anyway, so this guy is very obviously stealing. I know it, He knows I know it. But he's shoved the goddamn box of chocolates in his underwear and I can't do anything.” Dave's voice crackles over the phone. Reception is kind of bad on Dave's end, due to him living in the shifter side of town. John doesn't mind, it's better than not talking to his boyfriend at all.

“So what did you do?” John, lying comfortable in bed, smiles as he envisions Dave having to deal with this.

“I was just getting to that part, thank you John.” Comes the snappy reply. “Anyway, like I was saying before I was so  _ rudely _ interrupted. This guy has a giant box of chocolates shoved in his underwear and he just goes ‘I'm not buying anything today.’ Like I hate to break it to you buddy, but no one is that well endowed. But legally, I couldn't do anything against him seeing as asking him to turn out his underwear is a breach of privacy.”

John laughs, he can't help it. Dave's story is pretty hilarious if you really stop to think about it.

“Hey, don't laugh!” Dave protests, and John can just picture his flushed face over the phone. “My managers got super pissed with me after that. I nearly got fired.”

“Fired? From Walmart? Oh no, what a tragedy.” John replies, voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Ok, ok.” Dave huffs. “I know getting fired from Walmart sounds like a joke, but I don't want it tainting my resume. If...if we're going to move in together in that place we had our eye on, then I need to get a job to make sure we can pay for things. So I want to make myself as hireable as possible.”

“Hey you're very hireable! I'd hire you.” John laughs again, hoping to ease his boyfriends worries. “But don't worry too much Dave, I'll get a job as well. We're in this together.”

“Thanks John…” Dave replies softly. “It's just...we've graduated high school. All we have to do now is wait for our University letters and then we're off into the big wide world.”

“Yeah...that thought is a little scary.” John chuckles nervously. “But, speaking of University letters, have you got yours yet?”

“Not yet. I'll tell you as soon as it arrives. What about yours?” 

“I haven't gotten it either. I'm so nervous! The Institute of Medicine is  _ really _ tough to get into.”

 

In that moment, a knock sounds at John's door. Judging from the force and length of the knock, and the fact that Jane is out at the moment, John knows it's his Dad.

Mumbling an apology to Dave, he cups his hand over the phone and calls out. “Come in!”

The door swings open with barely a creak. Dad stands at the entrance, holding a letter. John has a feeling he knows exactly what this is about.

“So I was sorting through the mail and this came for you.” Dad holds the letter out for his son. ‘Institute of Medicine’ in navy blue ink next to a symbol of Hermes Staff is emblazoned on the envelope.

“What is it?” Dave's voice crackles over the phone.

“My university letter… It came…” John whispers.

“Oh shit!” Dave gasps. “You gotta open it dude!”

“I...yeah…” John whispers, taking the letter from his father's hand. With trembling fingers, he manages to tear open the letter one-handed, holding his phone with the other hand. Everything's so quiet he can hear Dave breathing over the phone.

Dad settles beside John on the bed, patiently waiting for his sons results. John pulls out the letter, eyes nervously darting down it.

“Come on, read it out! I can't see from here!” Dave says, voice impatient.

“Dear Mr John Egbert.” John reads aloud. “It is of our immense pleasure to inform you that you are accepted into the Institute of Medicine.”

John freezes in his reading, brain taking a few seconds to catch up to what he just read. He...got in? Immediately it feels as if a great weight is lifted from his chest. All those nights of late night studying, the panic attacks, the tears, it was all worth it.

“John you got in!” Dave's voice crackles over the phone, loud and excited for him.

“I'm so proud of you.” Dad beams with pride, blue eyes crinkling with joy for his son. “Now go on, read the rest.”

“Your results, in comparison to many others who put in their applications shone through to us. Your previous experiences listed with your application showed us that you will work well with our fine Institution.” John continues, still in shock and disbelief. This is a dream come true! He almost can't believe it's happening. “We are pleased to tell you that you are enrolled in the class of 2015. We are looking forward to seeing you then. Signed, Dean of the Institute: Henry Abramson.”

“Holy shit John you did it!” Dave cheers. John can hear the pride in his voice through the phone. “Do you want to go out for ice-cream to celebrate?”

“Yes! I'm so happy I...I...I...” Tears begin to make their way down John's face with his pure joy. Dad wraps an arm around his shoulders, rubbing it lightly. John wipes his tears away but then gives up, leaning into his dads side and clutching his phone. “I'm sorry.”

“I'm coming over right now. I'll take you to the really nice ice cream parlour, I'll be there in five. I love you babe.” Dave says, before the phone cuts off with a beep.

“I'm so proud of you John.” Dad starts, wiping away a few manly tears of pride. “My little boy is all grown up and off to college next year.”

“Thanks Dad. I'll do my best I promise. For you, to make you proud.”  John smiles, a determination in his eyes.

“Oh John, you've already made me proud.”

“Even prouder then.” John replies stubbornly, pouting.

Dad chuckles, ruffling his son's hair. “Now I heard something about Dave taking you out for ice-cream to celebrate?”

“Oh! Yeah! He said he'll be here in five.” John beams even wider. “It is okay I go out with him, right?”

“John, you're 18, you don't need to ask my permission.” Dad chuckles, standing up from John's bed. “Well I'll leave you to get ready, it's very sweet of Dave to take you out like that.”

“Oh well he's very good to me…” John chuckles back, blushing a little bit.

“Alright, I'll leave you to it.” Dad pauses at John's door, turning to look at his son. “Remember son, I love you and I'm so proud of you.”

“Thanks Dad…” John smiles as Dad exits his room and closes John's door behind him.

 

John lies back on his bed, staring at the ceiling with a still-dazed expression on his face. He almost can't believe he actually got in. He put in all the work and effort, and it paid off. The feel of his acceptance letter in his hand is what grounds him in reality. 

All that needs to happen to make everything perfect is for Dave to make in into the College of Film and the Arts. Then, they can live together and study together and everything will be perfect.

He can't wait until next year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Dave's story is based on my coworkers story, except dramatized for humour. Don't worry, she was fine and the managers didn't get her in trouble bc it wasn't her fault
> 
> Anyway enjoy! Please leave what you thought in the comments below!


	32. 19 Years Old. Moving Out.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave move into their new house, with the help of Dad and Jane

“Alright, on the count of three. 1...2...3...lift!” Dad directs, and immediately lifts his side of the double mattress out of the removal truck. John lifts up the other side at the same time, straining a little under its weight.

John is now 19. He has been accepted into the Institute of Medicine and Dave has been accepted into the College of Film and the Arts, and now they're moving in together. It's a big step, that's for sure, but John is excited to take it. It's sad to move out of his childhood house, but so exciting to be moving in to a new house in a new city with his boyfriend. Well, it's a sharehouse. Holloway is famous for its universities, and thus provides housing for all its students for the duration of their enrolment. John hasn't met everyone in the sharehouse yet, but he definitely knows that both him and Dave will be living with Jade and Rose.

“Alright, back up…back up...you're good to go!” Jane directs, raising her hand in a thumbs up position.

John leads Dad and the mattress towards the front door. Rose (her and Jade having already moved in a week prior) sits on the front porch, watching intently while sipping at a mug of tea. John kind of wishes she'd help at least a little bit, but it feels rude to demand her help. With a little adjustment, John manages to fit the mattress through the front door. Now comes the real challenge--the staircase.

John and Dave managed to snag a second floor room, with a nice view of Holloway Memorial Park across the street. It's probably one of the better rooms the house has to offer, the biggest size and windows spanning the outer length of the room.

Slowly, carefully, John and Dad manage to maneuver the mattress up the staircase. It takes a lot of awkward shuffling and a bit of complaining, but eventually it's in their bedroom. Luckily they've already carried up the bed frame, so it's just a matter of laying down the mattress on it and they're good.

With a massive sigh of relief, John practically dives onto the bed, burying his face in its white surface.

“John come on, get up. We still have to unpack the rest of your things.” Dad urges, amused smile on his face.

“Dad give me like...a minute. I need a break.” John replies, voice muffled from being pressed against the mattress.

“Did somebody say break!?” Dave enters the room, dragging several blankets behind him and holding a few pillows under his arm. “I am down for that.”

“Come lie down next to me then.” John rolls over on his back, patting the space beside him.

With no hesitation, Dave dumps all the blankets and pillows on the blankets and flops down beside John. John laughs when Dave pulls the blankets over the two of them, bundling them up in a cocoon. Dave slips into a tiny mouse form, curling himself up on John's chest. John automatically brings up a hand to cup Dave's tiny body in. Dave marvels at the rise and fall of John's chest, in sync with his laughter as well as the feeling of safety that comes with being cupped in John's hand.

“So you two are going to rest after just 20 minutes of work?” Dad asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah.” Dave replies, John nodding in agreement. 

Dad lets out an over exaggerated sigh. He then makes a ‘get up’ motion with his hand. “Come on, get up. We still have more furniture as well as your clothes to carry up. I promise we'll have a break in a little bit.”

“What! You three are chatting away while I'm doing all the work?” Jane enters the room, dragging a large plastic container full of clothes behind her. 

“I'm helping!” Dad protests. “I'm just trying to get these two to get up.”

Jane whirls on John and Dave, eyes narrowed into lizard-like slits. “Get up! You have plenty of time to do that tomfoolery later. We're doing this for you remember?”

“You're right, sorry Jane.” John mumbles, ashamed. Still clutching Dave's body to his chest, he gets off the bed, shoving the blankets to the side.

Dave shifts from mouse to crow, leaving John's hand in order to hover above him. “What he said. I'm going to grab some boxes.” Dave then swoops out of the door, making his way outside.

“Wait up!” John dashes out, following Dave.

“You're good.” Dad marvels, watching his sons retreating back.

“I know.” Jane replies smugly.

 

The rest of the moving process passes without a hitch. Jade joins at some point and everything is done a whole lot quicker thanks to her.

After a while John and Dave's room is completely furnished, with only a few extra touches that they can make later. All their clothes are packed away in separate sections in the closet. All their food, cooking supplies and toiletries are all packed away in their respective places.

Mittens, who travelled down in a cat carrier in John's car, is curled up on their bed, still a little salty from the move. Ah well, she'll have to deal with it. She's lucky that the sharehouse allows pets. She's always been more John's cat than anyone else's, and the separation would piss her off and she'd probably harm someone.

But since everything is packed away and they're fully moved in, it's now time to say goodbye to Dad and Jane. They stand outside in the garden, ready to say their final goodbyes.

 

“Goodbye Dad. I'll miss you.” John eans forward to wrap his Dad in a hug. “I promise I'll call you every weekend”

“Oh sweetheart I'll miss you too.” Dad rubs his back, squeezing tightly.

“I'll miss you too Jane.” John calls, opening up his arm to drag his sister into the hug.

“Yeah, I'll miss seeing your ugly mug around the house.” Jane murmurs.

“Oh…” John laughs, breaking away from the hug as he wipes a few tears from his eyes. “I guess I'll miss seeing your ugly mug too.”

“Oh I'm so proud of you John.” Dad smiles, leaning forward to hold his son's head in his hands. “You worked so hard for this. I've watched you transform from a tiny baby to the strapping young adult I see before me. I'm sad to see you move out, but I'm so proud to see my son beginning to make his own way in the world.”

“Dad…” John whispers, tearing up some more.

“And I'm proud of you too Dave.” Dad looks over at Dave, who has been standing awkwardly to one side the entire time.

“Wha-me?” Dave startles, pointing a finger at his chest.

“Yes, you. I watched you grow up alongside my son. And I'm proud of you for getting into the College of Film and the Arts, I saw some of your work and you're very talented.” Dad smiles.

“Oh...well thank you so much.” Dave blushes from the unexpected praise.

“Don't worry about it. You're part of the family Dave, you have been for years.” Dad waves Dave's embarrassment off, smiling widely. 

Dave shuffles a little closer, slipping an arm around John's waist. John grins and slips his hand around Dave's waist, pulling him closer. “We should thank you for helping us move. It was a massive help.”

“Yeah!” John agrees, nodding his head.

“Oh it's no problem! That's what family does, help each other out.” Dad smiles. Then, his face falls into an expression of sadness. “Ah, but we have to go now.”

Jane nods in agreement, expression downcast.

“Oh…” John's own face falls. “I'll miss you both…”

Dad steps forward and wraps John and Dave up in a big hug. Jane shuffles over to join. It's a big hug full of feelings and sadness and a long feeling of bittersweetness that still remains long after the hug is broken. All good things must come to an end.”

“Bye John, I'll miss you!” Jane says from the passenger seat of the car, window wound all the way down. “See you later Dave.”

“Goodbye sweethearts.” Dad smiles sadly. “Remember to call me on the weekends. Remember to eat properly, no week long periods with just instant noodles to eat. Remember I'm always here if you fall into financial trouble.”

“Dad no!” John protests. “You really don't need to do that! Besides, Dave and I should be pretty good for money until we get new jobs, so you don't need to worry.”

“I'm your dad, it's my job to be worried.” Dad leans forward and ruffles John's hair for what feels like the last time. With one last sad smile, Dad opens the car door and steps inside. “Goodbye to both of you. I wish you luck in university and in your new house.”

“Thanks…” John smiles sadly back.

“Bye John!” Jane calls again, hand waving frantically.

“Bye Jane! Bye Dad! I love you!” John waves back as Dad begins to drive away.

The car honks in reply, honking all the way down the street. John waves until they're gone, smiling whimsically.

And just like that, they're gone. John's Dad and twins sister, the man who raised him and the sister he shared his secrets with, gone, just like that. It hurts, it's terrifying, but it's freeing in a way. 

 

Later that night, when everyone else is asleep and the sky is a midnight blue, John and Dave curl up together on their bed.  _ Their _ bed. No one else's. Theirs. No one to care if Mittens gets cat hair all over the covers, and no one to care if Dave is in his true form or not. 

Although it's terrifying being away from that parental support (for John at least), they're finally on the way to making it out in the big world.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, enjoy!  
> It's my birthday today, so this is my first chapter posted as a 17 year old!


	33. 19 Years Old. Pancakes.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John cooks up a breakfast of choc chip pancakes and meets one of his housemates.

John is usually one to sleep in all day (if he's able to), but the excitement of moving into a new house yesterday wakes him up at the same time the sun is rising. It's a pretty annoying development in John's morning, but that feeling quickly dissipates when Dave stirs beside him.

“Jeez John, wake me up at assfuck in the morning why don't you?” Dave grumbles, looking at John with bleary eyes.

“Dave, we both know you wake up at this time anyway.” John rubs his eyes, grumbling. “Don't blame me for your unnatural body clock.”

“Well you're the one who woke me up. Usually you're in bed for hours.” Dave shakes his wings, feathers flying everywhere before shifting back into his human form.

“Well I was just excited I guess. And hungry.” John reasons, leaning forward to pat Mittens, who is curled up next to his thigh.

“God I'm hungry too. You wanna get up and make breakfast?” Dave asks, looking at John beside him.

“What, I make breakfast and you eat it all?” John replies dryly, climbing over Dave to get out of bed regardless. His socked feet touch the plush carpet, shuffling through it.

“I won't eat it all!” Dave protests, getting up after John, tossing the bed covers aside. “We can offer some to Rose and Jade too.”

“We do have that pancake mix.” John sighs, slipping on his slippers. “I'll just have cereal, but I'll cook up some pancakes for you. And maybe Jade and Rose too if they're up for it.”

Sleepily, John shuffles out of their room, padding down the corridor before coming to a halt at Rose and Jade's room. Either he's very tired or everything's very blurry. Feeling his face, he realises that he forgot to put on his glasses this morning. Before he can turn around and go back, his glasses are being slipped on his face from behind.

“You forgot your glasses, ya dummy.” Dave smiles affectionately, red eyes warm with amusement.

“Thanks Dave.” John beams back, flattered and content. He knocks on Rose and Jade's door before swinging it open. “Hey I'm going to make pancakes, you want some?”

Their room is absolutely covered in plants, mainly vegetables and herbs. The shelves are bulging with books, books lying in stacks on the floor as well. Rose and Jade are curled up together in a queen-size velvet bed, Jade being fast asleep.

John's question is met with a steely lavender glare. “I want you to not barge into our room at assfuck in the morning.”

“Yeah, sorry. Do you want pancakes though?” John reasks, blinking slowly.

“Yeah. Fine. Sure, whatever. Just get out I need sleep.” Rose grumbles, smothering her face in a satin pillow.

“Alright! They'll be up in a little bit.” John closes the door, smiling sleepily.

John, with Dave close behind, makes his way downstairs, into the kitchen.

 

They'd packed a shaker pancake mix for a celebration breakfast, despite the fact John doesn't like packet mix. John doesn't care, he's got cereal.

Dave leans up and grabs the shake n make pancake mix from the cupboard while John pulls out a large frypan and sets it on the stove, turning it on.

“Alright so before I add water, what special magic do you want to add to the mixture?” Dave holds out the opened carton towards his boyfriend, who peers inside it.

“Hold on.” John hums, turning around to dig through the cupboards, looking for something to spice up the recipe. Knowing Dave's favourite tastes, John pulls out a packet of chocolate chips and a small vial of cinnamon. John adds a pinch of cinnamon and roughly a cup of choc chips to the powder.

“There, it should taste alright now.”

“Thanks John you're a legend.” Dave proceeds to pour water into the carton as per the instructions. Screwing the cap back on when he's done, Dave begins the shaking of the carton. Grinning at John, he twirls around the kitchen, shaking vigorously. He does a little dance around John all while his boyfriend tries to ignore him. Pretty soon, the pancake mix is ready, and so is the frypan.

Taking the batter from Dave, John pours three medium sized pancakes into the frypan. They sizzle away and John stands over them attentively. Dave wraps his arms around John's middle and rests his chin on top of John's head. John lets out a soft sigh of contentment, humming while twirling the spatula in his hands. After a few minutes, the pancakes are ready, and John flips them onto pre-prepared plates. He then pours three more pancakes into the frypan.

Dave grabs a still-hot pancake, taking half of it in one bite. “Holy fuck John, this is delicious. My compliments to the chef.”

“Stop it Dave! You're getting crumbs in my hair!” John squeaks, paying no mind to the compliment.

“Oh, you love me.” Dave smirks, finishing his pancake.

“Yeah, I do.” John hums and, leaning forward, catches Dave's lips for a kiss. It's soft and sweet, with John getting the full taste of choc chip pancake in his mouth. It's a decent flavour, and John internally puffs up with pride in making packet mix taste good.

 

“Oh. I did not realise the kitchen was the place for making out.” A new, unfamiliar voice pipes up. John and Dave immediately break apart, humiliated, turning towards the newcomer.

Standing at the doorway is a tall, elegant Chinese woman; hair, clothing and makeup already perfect despite it being so early in the morning. She seems to emit a glamorous aura, perfectly poised and refined. A single eyebrow is raised, and vibrant green eyes sparkle with something akin to amusement.

“Oh my God I'm so sorry.” John squeaks in humiliation. “We thought no one else was up and...I'm sorry.”

“It's alright, I was a little surprised is all. I'm assuming you are the new residents, John Egbert and Dave Strider?” The woman steps forward, holding out her hand to shake. John takes it gladly, glad he didn't embarrass anyone.

“Yeah! I'm John, and this is my boyfriend, Dave. We're making pancakes.”

“I noticed.” Her eyes dart to the plates of pancakes and back up to John. “My name is Kanaya Maryam.”

“Nice to meet you Kanaya!” John chirps. “It's nice to meet one of our housemates, the only people we know is Rose and Jade.”

“Oh yes, Rose and Jade are quite lovely. I won't say the same for all of our housemates, but the majority of them are nice enough.” Kanaya pulls up a chair at the kitchen table and sits on it.

“We haven't met anyone else yet, what's everyone else like?” John asks, out of curiosity. He flips three more pancakes into their waiting plates and pours more batter into the frypan.

“Well apart from you, Dave, Rose, Jade and myself, there are three other people. Aradia is in the room opposite the staircase with the windows visible from the front garden. She's majoring in archeology at the University of Sciences and she seems quite friendly from the few conversations we've had. Karkat’s room is right next door to mine. He's a little grouchy but he's nice enough once you get to know him. We were friends before we both moved here, he's studying at the Institute of Medicine.” Kanaya’s relaxed expression shifts into one of nerves and discomfort. “And the third one...he uh, well. I would advise you not to go into his room. He never appears to leave it.”

“Ooooooh. Cryptid housemate, nice.” Dave finally speaks up after letting John do all the talking. Dave pulls up a chair opposite Kanaya, plonking down on it. It beats awkwardly standing around while his boyfriend cooks him breakfast.

John's busy flipping pancakes anyway, stacking up the pancakes on the plates until the reach a good height. The pancake batter in the carton runs dry, but each plate has a stack of about ten pancakes each, so it's fine. John stands up on his tippy toes and grabs the maple syrup from the cupboard above them. He pours a generous heap on all three plates before putting the syrup away. Finally he sprinkles some chocolate chips onto the pancake stacks.

“Bon appetit.” John smiles, placing a kiss on Dave's temple. He lays out a plate of pancakes in front of him.

Dave licks his lips, mouth watering. “John you're a miracle worker.”

“Thanks Dave. Now I'm going to run these two plates up to Rose and Jade, I'll join you in a minute.” John picks up the other two plates, ready to make his way upstairs but Kanaya stops him.

“Let me, you've worked hard on these. Sit down and eat.”

“Kanaya you don't have to!” John protests.

“I insist.” Kanaya says sternly, taking the two plates into her own hands.

“Oh...alright then.” John is a little confused at Kanaya’s gesture, but allows her to take the plates upstairs regardless. If she insists…

John then proceeds to grab a bowl, milk and the box of Lucky Charms. He now makes  _ his _ breakfast, pouring the cereal in, then the milk, then adding a spoon and pulling up a chair beside Dave to enjoy his own breakfast. Dave bumps his shoulder against John's, mouth full of pancake.

They've started off their first official day in their new house right, but both John and Dave know what the rest of the day will hold. Finishing the rest of their room decorations with a massive side of job-hunting. They've both got plenty of money stashed away, but they both know that stash will dwindle fast, especially in a city as expensive as Holloway. But, only time will tell what the future has in store for them. Let's just hope they don't end up broke by the end of the week.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! Please let me know what you thought in the comments below!!!  
> Kanaya, being 'polite' and taking up pancakes to Rose and Jade but in reality shes just very poly and gay ;)


	34. 20 Years Old. Dinner, Study, Bed.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John rings up his Dad to say hello while cooking dinner. Multitasking is a virtue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this one is very domestic and sweet, next chapter is jaderosemary so look forward to that!

A beef broth bubbles away in a pot on the stove, close to boiling. Little bits of ginger, coriander seeds, clove and fennel seeds float at the top of the broth. Next to the stove is a chopping board, a pile of thin strips of beef placed to the side. Two packets of 2 minute noodles rest beside the chopping board.

John is currently fussing over his soup, desperately trying to balance reading from his textbook, cooking dinner and talking to his dad. Dave is studying as well, supplies spread out across the table, frantically scribbling something down.

“If you're making beef pho you need to put chili in it.” Dad says over the phone

“Dave doesn't like chili!” John protests, stirring the broth frantically, he's a little stressed right now.

“This isn't about Dave, this is about good food.” Comes the forceful reply. Dad has always been very forceful about food. Everything must be cooked  _ his _ way, even when his son is a broke college student who can't afford half the ingredients. John's lucky that beef was on special and he'd just had payday.

“I'm cooking for the both of us Dad!” John tries to reason but Dad isn't having it.

“Then put chili in yours.” His reply is very abrupt, like that solves everything.

“Ugh fine, I'll do it.” John grumbles, doing the exact opposite. He tears open the 2 minute noodle packets, breaking them up into two seperate bowls.

“Is that the sound of two minute noodles? That better not be.” Oh great. Dad's hearing is way too good sometimes.

“Yes? Dad, 2 minute noodles are cheap, we need to save money. I'm just modifying the recipe to suit our budget.” John explains, pouring the boiling broth into the two bowls. “I'm ringing you up to say hello, not to be lectured on my cooking.”

Dad lets out a sad sigh. “I'm sorry sweetheart, I just want to make sure my son is eating right. You know I just want you to eat well.”

“I know. Sorry for going off at you. I'm just...doing the best with what we've got.” John shakes his head, popping the beef onto the steaming bowls. “Anyway, dinners ready, I have to go.”

“Alright sweetheart, enjoy your meal. I love you.” Dad's voice crackles over the phone. He seems forlorn and sad to say goodbye.

“I love you too Dad. Goodnight, I'll talk to you soon. Love you. Bye!” John says before ending the call. He feels a little bad, knowing how lonely his Dad is with him and Jane having moved out.

 

John carries Dave's bowl out and sets it next to him, pressing a kiss to his temple. John then sits beside him, his own bowl set in front of him.

“Dave? Dinners ready.”

Dave's head pokes up from his notes, eyes a little confused before they land on the bowl of beef noodle soup in front of him. “Oh fuck yeah, thanks John.”

“You're welcome.”

“So how was your conversation with Dad?” Dave smirks coyly, twirling a forkful of noodles and bringing them to his mouth.

“Oh don't act like you weren't listening in to every word I said!” John laughs. “But it was good yeah. He kept telling me how to cook dinner despite the fact I can't afford anything he said to add. I'm so lucky Jade lets me have free access to her herb garden.”

“It's perfect as it is John.” Dave slurps up another forkful, mixing some beef in with the noodles. “I know you're working with a budget, but your cooking has always been amazing.”

“Thanks Dave….” John smiles, hiding his blush by shoving a hefty amount of noodles and beef into his mouth. “How's the thing you're working on coming along?”

“Oh it's fine.” Dave looks at the pad of paper beside him and then back at John. “I have to write a mock script. It's due next month, so I'm not  _ too _ fussed about it. But the draft is coming along well!”

“That's great to hear! You have to let me read it.” John cheers, smiling wide.

“Oh...I…” Dave pauses, before shrugging. “Sure, whatever. I can't promise you'll like it though.”

“Of course I'll like it! I mean if it's Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff then I probably won't get it, but I'll still enjoy reading it.” John smiles. “What's the plot this time?”

“Plot? John you naive fool. The whole point of Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff is for it to be a surreal, plotless experience. It makes fun of movies, it is a pure satire. It is not supposed to have plot or any real meaning attached to it.” Dave rambles, idly eating his noodle soup. “That's the whole point, Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff is more of an experience than a movie. It's honestly a piece of film genius.”

While Dave was talking, John drained his entire bowl of food. It's been a pretty big day, with work and college lectures, and it drained everything out of him. He didn't quite notice how tired he was until he sat down, and now there's a dull ache throughout his entire body. At least dinner isn't too bad, John's an alright chef. Dad's food is always the best, no matter what. Dave hasn't stopped talking, still rambling about Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff and movies and surrealism or something. John's so tired that Dave's words start to blur together, and John doesn't notice until his head hits the table.

“Oh shit John! Are you alright?” Dave is by his side in an instant, propping John back up.

“Yeah...I'm just a little tired…” John mumbles, shaking his head to clear his tired thoughts.

“Aw, you just a little tired?” Dave smiles warmly at his boyfriends sleepy expression. “I'm not that boring am I?”

“What! No!” John looks mortified at Dave's suggestion, so much so Dave feels a little bad for saying it.

“I'm joking John. You must be really tired if you didn't laugh at that, how about you head off to bed? I'll join you a little later, I'll just wash up and pack away my homework.” Dave says, helping John to his feet, pressing a comforting kiss onto John's head.

“O...ok.” John replies, voice small. “I can help if you'd like.”

“No John, get some rest. You cooked, I clean.” Dave insists, making little shooing motions with his hands.

“Oh alright, goodnight then.” John sighs, resigned. He presses a kiss to Dave's cheek, before shuffling towards the direction of their room.

“Goodnight babe, sweet dreams!” Dave calls after him. John just makes a grunt of acknowledgement.

 

Dave turns his attention to the dishes in order to wash up. Thankfully, John didn't use too many cooking implements, so Dave easily stacks them into a small pile before running the hot tap. In the few seconds it takes for the tap water to heat up, Dave idly hums to himself and taps his foot against the linoleum-tiled floor.

Once the water is hot enough, Dave puts in the plug and squirts in some dishwashing liquid. The scent of cheap limes wafts up into Dave's nostrils as the sink fills with water and bubbles.

Dave then begins to wash the dishes, scrubbing at them until they're all clean and stacked neatly on the other side of the sink. While waiting for them to partly dry at least, Dave begins to pack up his homework, putting it back inside his folder. With that all packed away, Dave moves back to the washing up, wiping them dry with a tea towel before putting them away.

Work complete and tiredness seeping into his bones, Dave makes his way upstairs. John is already curled up in bed, fast asleep. Judging from the pile of clothes at the foot of the bed, John got dressed in a hurry to get to bed. Dave doesn't usually wear pyjamas, since his true form can't fit them and all, so getting dressed isn't a problem for him. Smiling softly at his boyfriends sleeping form, Dave slips into his true form, slipping in beside John in the bed. John unconsciously shuffles closer, burying his head in Dave's chest fluff. Stretching a wing over John's sleeping form, Dave closes his eyes and feels himself slip away into a peaceful, dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Obviously what John cooked isn't real beef pho, but the cheap college student on a budget version. John always cooks dinner because his cooking is amazing and Dave is not very good at it. He'd try to learn but why bother when your boyfriend is the best cook in the world?


	35. 20 Years Old. The Addition of Someone New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose and Jade are very gay tm for Kanaya, who is oblivious and very gay too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took a while, I was busy with midcourse prep. Another warning is that since it's midcourse, the next chapter may be a little delayed! Sorry in advance

Jade's garden is her absolute pride and joy. It's fairly small, but so is their garden. Jade only has half the garden to herself, as Kanaya has claimed the other half.

Kanaya likes to grow showy, flowering plants with only the purpose of being pretty while Jade prefers herbs and vegetables. They're more practical, and it's healthier to eat homegrown food in comparison to the shop bought stuff, Jade knows how many chemicals are pumped into them. The only flowering, non-edible plant Jade owns is the rose bush Rose gave her all those years ago.

 

Jade kneels in the dirt, tending to her strawberry bushes. A few are still flowering, but most are growing their fruit, still white and green. Some are red, and Jade picks them off the plant and pops them in her mouth with a silent glee. Her strawberry patch tends to attract a lot of weeds and snails, so she has to regularly weed it and lay out snail pellets to keep on track.

It's quite a nice day to garden. It's sunny out, but not too sunny. There are clouds in the sky, but none of them threaten rain. The warm, pleasant day is perfect for gardening.

“Oh, good morning Jade!” A voice calls from across the garden. Apparently Kanaya had the same thought process, as she's perched delicately on the garden bench, pruning the rose bushes surrounding the bench. Jade finds herself blushing. Everything that woman does is so smooth, delicate and full of purpose. Even when covered in dirt and leaves, Kanaya still manages to look perfectly poised. Ah! Stop it Jade! You have a girlfriend!!!

“Good morning Kanaya! It's a lovely day today isn't it?” Jade replies after an embarrassingly long pause. She has to get those thoughts of the woman out of her head. What would Rose say? Well, Rose has said she's found Kanaya attractive on an aesthetic level before, but that's besides the point!

“Quite.” Kanaya chuckles. “I'm doing some deadheading and pruning for my roses right now, they need it. I can see you're gardening too, what are you doing?”

“I'm tending to my strawberries. There's some ripe ones, would you like one?” Jade plucks a ripe strawberry, holding it out to Kanaya. They've been living in the same house for a year and the two girls have amassed a somewhat friendship based off a shared love of gardening. Despite their friendly talks Jade is still a little intimidated by her.

“Oh I'd love one.” Kanaya rises, brushing off her long skirt before making her way over to Jade. Kanaya takes the offered strawberry and pops it in her mouth. “This is absolutely delicious. I always find home grown fruit and vegetables to be much better than the store bought ones.”

“I agree!” Jade chirps. “And you never know what kind of chemicals they put in the stuff.”

“Quite. I always try to buy locally but it's so expensive so it's really hard.”

“Well you're always welcome to my garden!” Jade pipes up before she can stop herself. “I mean plenty of people use it already.”

“That's very sweet of you Jade.” Kanaya lets out a rare wide smile. Usually it's a thin-lipped grimace or a half-smile but today it's a wide one, brilliant like the sun.

“You're welcome!” Jade flushes. “Honestly I grow way too many vegetables, way too much for just two people. It's better to share them.”

“There's no such thing as too many vegetables. But you are a very kind person Jade. I admire you for that.” Kanaya admits.

Kanaya’s compliment leaves Jade's heart doing crazy flips in her throat. She tries to resist it but finds she can't. God what would Rose think? They've been together for six years, and now Jade is getting sort-of-feelings for another woman! She still loves Rose, well and truly, but…

“Well I must get back to pruning my roses, I'll talk to you later?” Kanaya says, a strange lilt to her voice as she asks the question.

“Yeah! Yeah, of course. Talk to you later!” Jade smiles. 

“Thank you again for the strawberry. It was delicious.” Kanaya smiles as she turns and heads back to her side of the garden. Jade watches her go, suddenly all too aware of Kanaya’s movements. She  _ really _ needs to talk to Rose about this.

 

☆☆☆

 

The stairs creak and groan as Rose ascends them, reading a book. Despite her light tread, the stairs still groan in complaint. That's because they, like everything in the house, is incredibly old and in dire need of fixing. Rose has been a little worried the stairs will collapse just in general several times already, despite Jade reassuring her they won't.

The book Rose has her nose buried in is quite a good one. She's taking a few pointers from it, for her literary course. It's about a young boy with the ability to control the flow of time through songs who needs to save a doomed land from a terrible fate. It's a sad book, with a depressing and sombre air to it. Rose wants to emulate this feeling within her own work.

Rose is so absorbed in her book that she doesn't notice Kanaya descending the stairs right in front of her. The two collide, Rose's book flying out of her hands and tumbling to the floor.

“Oh my apologies, I didn't see you there.” Kanaya apologises, a light blush on her cheeks. “I was preoccupied with my phone.”

“As was I, preoccupied with a book.” Rose replies, eyes flitting down to where her book fell, all the way down the stairs. “Which has now fallen to the floor.”

“I can see that.” Kanaya has her eyes on the book as well, gaze unreadable. “It must have been a good book for you to have not seen me walking down the stairs.”

“Yes, usually I can spot you from a distance, but not today.”

“Spot me from a distance? What are you implying there Rose?” Kanaya raises an eyebrow green eyes staring at Rose intently.

Rose blushes at having been caught out. “I was merely implying your fashion choices are quite bright and colourful and easily spotted from a distance. Not that that is a necessarily bad thing.”

“I would say the opposite of you, with your rather dark fashion choice.” Kanaya adds onto Rose's statement. “You blend into the shadows.”

“I prefer the darker colors, I think it suits me better.” 

“Hmmm…” Kanaya frowns. She looks Rose up and down. “I think perhaps a lighter lilac may suit you. A lilac tank top paired with some black skinny jeans.”

“Thanks, but I do believe I know how to dress myself.” Rose sniffs haughtily, but she's far from insulted. In fact, she feels flattered.

“I'm merely making a suggestion. You can take my advice or not. But I believe you will look very nice with it, and I am a fashion major.” Kanaya shrugs. “But anyway, I must be going. I apologize for bumping into you. I hope you enjoy the rest of your book.”

Kanaya moves past Rose, all the way down to the base of the stairs. Her movements are fluid and graceful, but Rose can tell she's a little bit tense. Rose is still very flattered and a little shell-shocked at Kanaya’s compliment, so she almost doesn't realise that Kanaya is holding Rose's book out towards her. Blinking out of her trance, Rose takes the book out of Kanaya’s hands.

“Thank you.” Rose smiles softly, clutching the book against her chest. Kanaya smiles cryptically back, before turning on her heel and walking down the corridor. Rose can't help but watch her as she goes. Rose can easily admit Kanaya is quite the attractive woman, with quite the sense of smile. She can picture herself in a future with Kanaya, although there is the issue of Jade. Not that Jade is an issue, Rose loves her girlfriend! Jade is in the picture too of course. Rose knows polyamory exists, but she doesn't exactly know how Jade would react to it.

She should probably talk to Jade about this.

 

☆☆☆

 

Jade lies in bed, a million thoughts whirring in her mind. Beside her, Rose is hunched over a book, eyes flicking down the page as she reads. Jade recognises the look on her face,  the one of complete and utter concentration that comes with her reading a really good book. Which kind of sucks, because Jade wants to talk about Kanaya and Rose doesn't seem to be in the mood to talk right now.

Jade glances around the room, taking note of her surroundings. There are two separate desks, one for each inhabitant  of the room. Rose’s desk (and subsequent ‘side’ of the room) is neat, all information packed away in separate folders. Her own desk is a mess, covered in pot plants, dog-eared books and bits of machinery. Rose hates it but Jade loves it.

“Rose?” Jade pipes up, finally gathering her courage to interrupt Rose's reading.

“Yes Jade?” Comes the slightly irritated reply.

“I want to talk to you about something. Someone rather. I want to talk about Kanaya.”

“Oh…” Rose sets down her book on the bedside table, sliding in a paper bookmark. She'd been meaning to ask Jade about the same thing, but she hasn't found a way to subtly bring it up. Now, she's worried. Is Jade angry with her?

“I love you Rose, I really do. You mean the world to me.” Jade begins. That kind of talk makes Rose very worried for the breakup talk or something of the like. “But recently, I've been kind of thinking of Kanaya in that way too.”

Rose is immediately relieved. “Oh really?”

“Yes! Rose I'm so sorry, I love you a lot, but I think I love her too.” Jade blushes deeply, so deep even the tips of her ears are a bright red.

“Jade it's okay, I feel the same way.” Rose lays a hand on Jade's shoulder, a light blush on her own face. “I love you a lot, but I believe I have feelings for Kanaya as well.”

“Well it's good the feeling is mutual...but what are we going to do about it?” Jade asks, mouth twisting into a flat shape. “Do we ask her out? Do we leave it be? What about us? What do we do?”

“Well Jade, there is such a thing as polyamory, which is a consensual relationship between three or more people.” Rose explains only a little helpfully, unable to resist. “So we could technically all be in a relationship together.”

“But that's even if Kanaya likes us that way too.” Jade sighs, playing with a stray strand of hair.

“Well, we should take a chance.” Rose thinks back to all those years ago, when she took that chance by asking Jade out. It was the best thing she's ever done.

“You think?” Jade pulls a face, but there's a bit of hope in green eyes.

“I know, and with your help and consent, I have a plan to ask her out on a date with both of us.”

“Will it work?” Jade asks, cocking her head cutely to one side, dark curly hair brushing against her legs.

“Let's hope it does.” Rose reaffirms, holding up her hand with two fingers crossed. Jade beams and copies her motion, bumping her crossed fingers against Rose's own.

 

☆☆☆

 

Kanaya leans back on the couch, sewing a pattern onto red fabric with golden thread. Her fingers work fast, nimbly avoiding getting pricked by her needle. The fabric shines dully in the light, a gorgeous silky material.

The TV, volume turned low and channel turned to a Korean soapie, supplies a nice background noise as Kanaya does her work. The plot is strange, and Kanaya’s only half paying attention, but it's still fun to watch.

“Whatcha watching?” Jade, having appeared seemingly from nowhere, plops down beside Kanaya on the couch.

“Oh! Hello Jade!” Kanaya looks up from her work and greets Jade with a friendly smile. “I'm not watching anything really, I'm focussing more on my sewing than the show.”

Jade stares at the screen, a little transfixed. The expression on her face is cute, a blank-eyed stare and a small smile as she takes in the drama on screen. Kanaya forces herself to look away. Jade has a girlfriend and Kanaya shouldn't intrude on that.

“Jade.” Rose walks into the room, putting a hand on her hip and staring down at her girlfriend. Ah, speak of the devil. Well, more so the very attractive goth girl who is simultaneously stunning, beautiful and has a girlfriend. “Oh, hello Kanaya, I didn't see you there.”

“Good afternoon Rose. How are you today?” Kanaya asks, turning at least three quarters of her focus back to her sewing. Rose and Jade are in a room together and they're gonna be more focussed on each other than Kanaya.

“Good, good.” Rose replies, nodding...nervously? “Hey um, we wanted to ask you a question.”

“Oh?” Kanaya looks up, surprised. Both Rose and Jade's gazes are fixed on her, eyes burning with an intensity Kanaya has not experienced before.

“Yes. Well, we were wondering if…” Rose starts, a blush on her cheeks that compliments nicely with the lilac shirt she's wearing.

“You'd like to go on a date with us. Both of us. A romantic date.” Jade finishes. Both girls await a response, eyes fixed on Kanaya.

She almost can't believe it. Both girls are absolutely gorgeous. Jade is sweet and kind and shares Kanaya’s passion for gardening and passion. Rose is smug and frighteningly intelligent, conversations with her are never boring. The fact that they're asking Kanaya out on a date (with both of them mind) is a dream come into reality for her. She's fancied the two for a while and Kanaya had an inkling they liked her back. She knows what her answer will be: yes.

“I thought you'd never ask.” She replies, a smug, contented smile on her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone who can guess what game the plot of Rose's book is from gets a virtual cookie!


	36. 21 Years Old. Celebration of Adulthood.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John tries alcohol for the first time and is embarrassing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So they're finally adults! They'll be graduating college and moving into their own spartments and making their own way in the world over the next few chapters, and then they have kids together who are my fankids Elizabeth and James and i love them and hopefully you will too

“Chug! Chug! Chug! Chug!” Rose drunkenly cheers on an already pretty tipsy John as he sculls down his second bottle of beer. Both Jade and Rose let out a loud cheer as the contents are drained, Rose waving her own bottle in the air. Dave watches on, amused, nursing a glass of cold apple cider in his lap. Kanaya is sitting in the chair opposite him, sullenly watching the festivities. It's rare the five are actually free from work and study to have a get together, but it's a special occasion.

It's John's 21st, and thus his first time drinking alcohol. Always a good kid, John never drank alcohol before it was legal, unlike the rest of his friends. It shows, it really does. From what Dave can see, John is pretty lightweight, which is absolutely hilarious to him.

John pulls his lips away from the empty bottle, laughing loudly as he sets it down on the table. Rose (playing shot-mixer/bartender) is already mixing up John another shot. Dave can see a lot of vodka, some lemon juice as well as blueberry schnapps. It looks pretty good, Dave must admit.

“Daaaavey!” John slurs, plonking down beside Dave. “Dave. Dave. Dave. Daaaavey.”

“Yes John?” Dave sighs, smiling nonetheless. It seems John is a clingy, happy drunk. That's good to know.

“I think...I think I'm a bit drunk.” John looks at Dave, a strange smile on his face.

“You sure are buddy.” Dave chuckles. “You're a lightweight, congratulations.”

John shakes his head, mouth in a flat line. “I'm not! I just haven't drunk alcohol before.”

“Whatever you say John.” Dave smirks. Having only been sipping at his apple cider for around fifteen minutes, Dave isn't drunk at all. He's responsible. “Anyway, happy 21st again John. You're an adult now, you can legally get wasted.”

“Ugggggh.” John groans, throwing his head back in annoyance. Drunk John is also a bit more of a drama queen than usual. “Sorry. Thank you. I've just been hearing that all day and it's reeeeally been getting on my nerves. Especially at Dad's 21st dinner party for me.”

“Oh come on John, that was fun. And since your Dad paid for it all it was the best I've eaten and the least stressful dinner I've had in ages.” Dave smirks, nudging John on the shoulder.

“I gueeeeeeess so.” John sighs. “It was reeeeally boring though.”

“I think those things are supposed to be boring.” Dave chuckles, taking another sip of his drink.

“Drink up boys!” Rose slams two brightly coloured shot glasses onto the table, a little bit of the contents spilling out onto the table. Rose is more than a little drunk by now, but luckily Kanaya has sworn to be the sober one and look out for her.

“Oh! Thanks Rose!” John grabs the glass in front of him, before frowning down at it, as if wondering what to do with it.

“You just down it, like this, see?” Dave demonstrates, downing his own glass in one gulp.

“Okay…” John copies him, eyes widening at the taste. Dave must admit, Rose is pretty good at drink mixing. “Wow this is really good! Do you have any more?”

“Yeah, just give me a sec.” Rose is already preparing more drinks, all while drinking her own.

 

The night continues like this, Rose giving out drinks to everyone and getting Jade, John and herself more drunk. It's supposed to be a casual drinking thing, but now Jade is sitting on Kanaya’s lap, Rose is drunkenly trying to cook...something that looks like a brown lumpy mess, and John is standing on the kitchen table.

Now Dave is only slightly drunk, but he's pretty sure John shouldn't be up there.

“What are you doing John?” Dave slurs a bit in his wording, staring up at the boy.

“I'm dancing!” John replies, matter-of-fact. He's wiggling slightly, eyes closed in an attempt at dance. “Join me!”

“No thanks, I think I'll just watch.” Dave chuckles, waving it off.

“Okay!” John does a twirl, aimlessly spinning on the balls of his feet. And then it happens.

John trips and begins to fall downwards. As if his world is in slow motion, Dave reaches forward. John falls into his outstretched arms, eyes wide and a little out of focus. Dave draws him closer to his chest. John breaks out into a wide, sloppy grin as he leans forward to plant a kiss on Dave's cheek. “My hero!”

“Okay, bedtime. You've had way too much to drink.” Dave says, nonplussed. Internally however, he's stressing out. John nearly got very badly hurt.

“No I haven't!” John protests and attempts to roll out of Dave's arms. It doesn't work. Instead John just kind of wiggles aimlessly in Dave's arms.

“You were dancing on top of the kitchen table.” Dave deadpans.

“Alright, maybe I have.” John admits sulkily. His expression immediately brightens as a thought crosses his mind. “But! You gotta carry me up to bed!”

Dave just sighs. He turns to the girls, waving a goodbye the best he can with John in his arms. “Well goodnight ladies, I'm taking the birthday boy up to bed.”

“Don't do anything I wouldn't do.” Rose winks sloppily. Dave flushes at the implication. Even while drunk, Rose still manages to get under his skin.

“Goooooodnight!” Jade waves enthusiastically, green eyes unfocused.

“Goodnight.” Kanaya sighs. Dave feels a little bad for her, having to stay sober and deal with her two drunk girlfriends. But Dave has a drunk boyfriend of his own to deal with, so he can't give out too much sympathy for her. Especially since John is playing with his hair, ruffling it so it loses all the style Dave spent ages working into it that morning.

 

All the way up the stairs, John looks around and squirms excitedly like a kid in a candy store. It's kinda cute, but kinda annoying as well. 

As soon as he steps inside their room, Dave sets John down, sitting him on their bed. “Okay, that's enough carrying for a while. My arms are killing me.”

John pouts and lets out a whine. Wiggling around, John squirms under the covers, pulling them over his head to encompass himself completely.

“Come on John, you have to put your pajamas on.” Dave sighs, bending over to pick up John's pyjamas off the floor from where he left them this morning. “You're in jeans and you're wearing a binder and I'm not letting you sleep in that.”

“Alright, fiiiine.” John rolls (literally) out of bed and falls onto the floor. Looking up at Dave, he reaches up and makes grabby-grabby hands. “Help me up.”

“John, you're 21 now and you have functioning arms and legs, you can get up yourself.” Dave looks down at John, unsympathetic, until John shoots him the puppy dog look. Dave's always been a sucker for that.

Dave hoists John up, shoving John's pyjamas into his hands. “Come on, time for beddy-byes, get changed.”

John looks down at the bright yellow clothing confusedly, as if wondering what to do with it.

“Dude, it's not that hard.” Dave laughs, pulling out his own pyjamas and slipping them on effortlessly. He bundles up his other clothes in a ball, while John watches with vacant eyes. “I'm putting these in the laundry basket, I'll be back in a little bit.”

Dave grabs John's hand and gives it a comforting squeeze before heading out their door and down the stairs. John seems really disorientated, but he should be fine, he just needs rest after all that alcohol. Dave feels a little bit woozy and disorientated himself, they've all had a bit much to drink.

The girls have ceased partying, Rose and Jade curled up asleep on Kanaya on the couch. As Dave passes, Kanaya waves him a greeting. Dave waves back, not stopping to talk, focusing instead on his task of putting his clothes into the laundry basket.

The laundry is situated right next to the lounge room. It's not that bad looking, but it could definitely look better. The old half-dead washing machine and beige fabricked laundry basket gives the whitewashed walls character. Yeah, let's call it that. Dave swings open the door and flicks on the light. Effortlessly, Dave tightens the bundle of clothes and tosses them into the laundry basket. He shoots, he scores!

Dave hurries back to their room, pace quickening at the thought of bed. His footsteps are silent as they make their way back up the stairs, honed from years of practice. The sound of muffled groaning makes Dave hurry faster. It sounds like John, and it doesn't sound good.

The sight of a half-naked, very drunk John, struggling to take his binder off is kind of funny and very relieving. At the sound of the door opening, John turns around. He flushes furiously, and tears well up in his eyes.

Taking pity on him and feeling bad for laughing, Dave steps forward, grabbing John's hands and rubbing his thumbs against John's palms in a circular motion. “Want some help?”

“Please…” John mumbles, clearly very embarrassed. “Usually I can take it off okay, but I guess drunk me can't do that simple task.”

“It's fine babe, I'm happy to help. Alright, arms up.” Dave laughs good naturedly. John holds his arms up in the air as Dave peels the beige fabric off his boyfriends chest. When he gets it off completely, he hands it back to John.

“Thank you.” John smiles in relief as he folds it up and places in its spot in his drawer of the bedside table. 

Dave slides his arm around John's shoulders, pulling him closer to press a kiss against his temple. “No problem, boblem.”

John laughs, leaning down to pick up his pyjama shirt before leaning back into Dave's arms. “But it's such a relief to get that thing off sometimes. I don't necessarily like what's underneath it, but it really hurts sometimes.”

“That sucks, but I like your boobs. They're pretty cute. Look, they've got little freckles on them and everything.” This earns Dave a glare from John.

“Easy for you to say. I guarantee if you had these on your chest you wouldn't find them so cute.” John sniffs haughtily, breaking away from Dave in order to slip on his pyjama shirt.

“Oh shit I'm sorry I didn't mean--” Dave starts, only for John to hold his hand up to stop Dave continuing.

“It's okay, I don't mind.” John lets out a massive yawn, and drunkenly stumbles back into bed.

 

Dave follows him, automatically slipping into his true form as he lays down beside John. Dave stretches out his wings, resting one atop John's form. John smiles, wriggling forward so that he is completely covered by wing and blanket, and burying his head in Dave's chest fluff.

“I love it when you hold me like this, I feel so safe.” John admits.

“O...oh..” Dave's true form can't exactly blush, but that doesn't mean he isn't flattered and flustered by the compliment. 

“Goodnight Dave! I love you!” John chirps, before, unsurprisingly, snores begin erupting from his mouth.

“Goodnight John. I love you.” Dave gives him a little peck on the top of the head. “Happy 21st.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And then John wakes up with a killer hangover and vomits in the toilet while Dave laughs at him. To make up for it, Dave takes John out for McDonalds.


	37. 22 Years Old. Unceasing Work and Pain.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John comes home exhausted from a long day of work and college.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a warning, chapters are gonna come out slower bc I'm working on something new at the moment! It's gonna be a botw au and full of adventure and a growing friendship and you dont really need to know zelda lore to read it, so look out for that in the Johndave tag in like??? Sometime soon.

John's car comes to a halt in front of his house. It's dark out, and he's exhausted after a long day. 

John's hands automatically open the car door, body working on autopilot. He steps out, drawing his shoulder bag closer to himself. His feet ache as he crosses the empty street, leg muscles complaining heavily. The front door is unlocked, but John locks it behind him regardless.

The lights are off, which has left the house in darkness, except for the stairwell light. John knows Dave left the door unlocked and the light on for him. The thought brightens his night, only a little.

John decides to skip dinner. Fuck it, it's 10:30 at night and he's not feeling hungry. Only absolutely exhausted.

The trek up the stairs is short, but it feels like an eternity. John has to practically drag himself up them. Stumbling up to the second floor, he pushes open his bedroom door.

Inside, the room is dark, lit only by the light from Dave's laptop. Dave is in bed, pyjamas on as he watches a movie on his laptop, a notepad beside him filled with unintelligible scrawl. The fact that Dave's still up isn't a surprise to John. Dave has always had bad sleeping habits.

“Hey John. How was work?” Dave pulls his headphones down and pauses the video, turning to look at John.

“Fucking shit.” John grumbles, chucking his bag onto the floor beside the bed and wasting no time in stripping out of his work clothes.

“That bad huh?” Dave winces in sympathy.

“I'd quit if we didn't need the fucking money.” John practically growls. “My managers are shit, my coworkers are shit, the customers are shit and the food we serve is shit.”

“Hey, at least you get free food?” Dave reasons, entirely sympathetic to his boyfriends dilemma.

“Not tonight. Apparently they're ‘wasting money’ giving it to us.” John mocks, scowling as he begins to pull his pyjamas on. “Despite the fact that the food in question is getting shoved out in the trash.”

“That sounds bullshit, come snuggle in bed with me, that'll make it better.” Dave pats the bed beside him, clearing away the notebook. John wastes no time and dives right into bed beside him, burying his face in Dave's side. Dave rests a hand on John's back, holding it there.

“It's just so bullshit, you know? I work my ass off day and night there, and I don't get shit for it. I have so many burns from the fryer, let me tell you.” John continues his rant, very salty.

“I know.” Dave knows about the burns. It makes him furious, but it's the only place in the immediate area that will hire John. John's tried for so many others.

“And if I told you what was going on behind the scenes in the kitchen, you'd never want to eat there.”

“I don't want to anyway.” Dave chuckles.

“Sorry, I'm sorry. Work troubles should stay at work. I don't mean to take my frustrations out on you it's just...exhausting.” John sighs, rolling away from Dave's side and staring up at the ceiling.

“You're not taking it out on me dude, I understand it must be shitty. I don't work hospitality but I work retail and that's pretty shitty.” Dave laughs dryly. God his job sucks. Both of their jobs suck.

“Yeah...how was work and college today anyway? I'm afraid I missed you this morning.” John sighs. He did wake up this morning to an empty bed, which has been happening much more commonly that John would like recently, due to Dave's job.

“Work was okay, it was just a six hour shift. It just kind of went by both really slowly and in a blur. Then I had college, and that was alright, I guess. I was given three case studies to critically analyse by the end of the week though, so I'm going to be up for a little while longer.” Dave replies, a grimace on his face.

“Long day, I can relate to that.” John sighs, sleepily rubbing his eyes. “I just want to sleep now. Like I'm pretty much going to go to bed now.”

“I won't go to sleep yet, I've got to watch the rest of this.” Dave briefly shows John the screen of his laptop. “Just let me know if it distracts you and I'll watch it some other time.”

“Dave it's fine. Goodnight.” John smiles, closing his eyes. “I love you.”

 

He feels long, slender fingers weaving through his hair. John automatically curls up closer, feeling most of his exhaustion fade. The fingers are soothing, easing his annoyances with a gentle massage.

He hardly sees Dave anymore. They're always working or always at college or doing college work and it's only late at night when they're too exhausted to think properly that they see each other. John knows it's for the best, for money and his doctorate and Dave's movie magic, but it sucks major ass.

So John just presses close, grateful for now and hoping for a time in the future where he doesn't have to work his ass off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please tell me what you thought in the comments below! My comment crops are literally dying.


	38. 22 Years Old. College Graduations, Hurray.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone coincidentally graduates college at the same time and discuss their future on a picnic blanket.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao i have no knowledge of american states and i have no intention on learning about every 50 states in america. to be fair, americans have no idea about the australian states, or even that we had any so :/

“I still can't believe this.” John murmurs, still in shock. His graduation cap is clutched in his hands. “We've all graduated college. I like, have an actual doctorate now, kind of. I still need to do my internship and stuff but...wow.”

John leans back onto the grass, staring up at the leaves filtering the sky above him. The Institute of Medicine’s Class of 2019 has graduated, meaning John finally has graduated college. The University of Sciences as well as the College of Film and the Arts has also had their graduations, meaning Rose, Jade, Dave and Kanaya have all left their respective universities. In celebration after their graduation ceremonies, the five are having a picnic. There isn't any food, they're just relaxing under an oak tree on the College of Film and the Arts’ campus grounds.

“I know dude, it's crazy.” Dave laughs. “Like goodbye college, hello debt.”

“At least you've all left college and finished your education.” John sighs. I've still got 3 years medical school and my internship and work as a prac doctor before I can be Doctor Egbert.”

Everyone on their picnic blanket winces in sympathy. John just shrugs. It was his choice to be a doctor anyway.

“I know what you mean, I've still got my internship and stuff to go!” Jade huffs, shuffling her legs.

“See? Further and further and further into debt we go.” Dave laughs.

“That's not helping Dave.” Rose snaps. Dave pokes his tongue out at her in response. “Ugh. You are so immature.”

“So what are you two going to do now?” Kanaya asks, quietly sitting with her hands on her lap.

“Oh!” John beams, sharing a glance with Dave. “We're going to move in together! Like, into our own apartment. We're going to rent out this nice, cheap place back home in Washington State. Well, it's relatively cheap for Seattle. I need to go there for med school, and Dave's going to try and get scouted moviewise there.”

“Really I'm just along for the ride.” Dave shrugs. “But its music and art scene is pretty good apparently so I'm going there for that as well.”

“You two should do well there.” Kanaya says, Jade nodding alongside her. “We wish you luck.”

“Oh, thank you! What about you guys, what are you doing?” John asks, smiling.

“Well we're just kind of browsing apartments at the moment.” Jade laughs, shrugging. “We don't really know what we're doing now. We're looking towards a place in Florida but--”

“Why the fuck Florida?” Dave chokes out. “You actually want to live in that gator-infested shit hole?”

“Aw, you're going to be on the other side of the country!” John whines at the same time. “We won't get to see each other anymore.”

“Don't be stupid John, we'll still keep in contact.” Rose shakes her head. “I know it sucks but that is adulthood for you. We have to go our separate ways in order to succeed.”

“Is no one acknowledging the fact that you're moving to Florida.” Dave pipes up again.

“ _ Might _ be moving to Florida.” Rose continues, scowling.

“Well we’ll probably have to, seeing as a possible internship that I'm thinking about taking is in Florida.” Jade sighs. “I mean it sucks and everything but what can we do?”

“I'll miss you guys!” John says, smiling sadly. “Promise you'll keep in touch.”

“Of course we will!” Jade reassures. “We’ll always be friends! Remember when we did that friendship blood pact thing when we were like 12?”

“Pardon?” Kanaya’s eyes widen in surprise, although she really shouldn't be that surprised, considering Rose is one of her girlfriends.

“Please don't remind me.” Dave groans, putting his head in his hands.

“What, are you saying you regret being our friend?” John says, teasing.

“No!” Dave replies. “No, I just hate my dumbass younger self and the decisions he made.”

John shoots him a look of pity, blue eyes wide and watery with tears. He leans forward and wraps Dave up in a hug, holding him so his arms are trapped. “I love you,  _ and _ your dumbass past self.”

“John no, no you don't understand how cringey he was.” Dave says, attempting to wiggle out of John's grip and failing.

John just hugs him tighter, laying his cheek against Dave's forearm to look at Rose, Jade and Kanaya in front of him. “But in all seriousness, I'll miss you guys a ton. We both will. All I can think of is how we met and it's making me sad.”

“Awwwww.” Jade coos, face a sad frown. “I remember how we met too! John and I were friends first, we were buddies in kindergarten. Then you fought Rose for a pencil and then she was sitting with us from then on. Then you practically dragged Dave over to our lunch table by his hand--”

“--what! No I didn't!” John interrupts in protest.

“Yes John, you did do exactly that.” Rose confirms, smirking a little.

Dave finally frees up a hand and rests it on top of John's head. He leans in close and whispers into John's ears. “You did drag me there, but I'm so glad you did.”

“Aw…ok...” John says, finding it hard to stay mad at that.

“And of course, then Kanaya came along many years later.” Jade continues her earlier speech as if she wasn't interrupted. Kanaya, looks very lost, but pleasantly surprised at being mentioned.

“Promise you'll keep in touch.” John says sadly. “Our friendship was great and I don't want to lose it due to distance.”

“Of course, as long as you promise the same!” Jade shuffles forward and wraps John up in a bittersweet hug. 

“Statistically long distance relationships of any kind don't tend to work out.” Rose pipes up, earning her glares from everyone.

“Shut up Rose.” Dave says bluntly. He scoots forward on his ass, and joins in on the hug. Rose reluctantly (or otherwise) follows his lead.

“Come on Kanaya, join us!” Jade calls to her girlfriend, reaching her hand out to grab her.

“Alright then.” Kanaya shuffles forward, and is immediately swept up in the hug.

 

Hopefully, Rose is wrong for once and they continue being friends despite the long distance. (Spoiler, she is.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long gap/shittiness of this, but I'm working on something else at the moment that will be super good I promise!  
> But hey its not like anyway actually gives a shit so :/


	39. 22/23 Years Old. Moving In.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave move into their new apartment together.

John's shitty, slightly beat up silver car comes to a stop in front of a set of red-brick apartment buildings. The car is stuffed full of luggage; food, pillows, kitchen utensils/pots and pans, doona covers and sheets, clothes, an angry cat in a cat carrier and of course, John and Dave.

Their new apartment is a two bedroom apartment that is pretty cheap. It's pretty damn good for a first house, being 2 bedroom and all. It's in a relatively good neighbourhood from what John can see. They already have their furniture inside and now it's just the final trip moving themselves and the little things. It does have a communal laundry room, which is a little gross, but is an opportunity to make new friends.

“So this is it huh?” Dave asks, peering out the window to look up at the buildings. The cat carrier on his lap growls angrily at his voice. Mittens always does that, she's never liked Dave.

“Yeah, our new home.” John smiles, leaning forward to stare at the building with Dave.

“It's kind of shitty isn't it?” Dave turns to look at John, resigned look on his face.

“It's what we can afford.” John sighs. Then he snaps into attention, unclipping his seat belt and pocketing his keys. “Alright, time to unpack.”

John hops out of the car, opening the back side door and removing two green bags full of food. Dave follows suit, grabbing their bags of clothes (of course they're wearing as many as they can to save room) and grabbing as many as he can while still holding Mitten’s cat carrier.

Giving Dave a cheery, excited smile, John closes the car door, and leads him towards their new apartment.

 

Their apartment is situated on the second floor of five. Unfortunately there is no elevator, so that means they have to walk up the stairs. The corridor is long and reminds Dave a little of his old house, the one he grew up in.

“1...2...3...4...5! This is us!” John stops in front of a warn wooden door with a golden number 5 on the door. Setting down his bags, John pulls out his keys. Clicking them into the lock, the door slides open. Before John can step inside however, Dave grabs his arm to stop him, an idea forming in his mind.

“Wait, before you go inside, I want to do something.” Dave says.

John turns to look at him, a puzzled expression on his face. “What do you want to do?”

“Alright so isn't it like, traditional to carry your spouse over the threshold of your new house? Like in traditional symbolism of a new future or some shit?” Dave asks, a serious look in his eyes.

“What are you saying...? And we're not married, you're my boyfriend.” John looks even more confused now.

“No need to sweat it on the finer details. Let me carry you inside and kiss you full on the mouth and be all romantic and junk.” Dave propositions, looking a bit embarrassed at his own wording.

“Dave that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard.” John laughs. Regardless, he holds his arms up and towards Dave, ready to be carried. “Let's do it.”

Dave sets down everything he was carrying and scoops John up bridal-style in his arms. John laughs maniacally, even more so as Dave staggers a little under his weight. John's arms wind around Dave's neck, holding him closer a little in fear of being dropped. Dave steps into their apartment victoriously. John cheers and leans upwards at the same time Dave leans down, and their lips meet in a celebratory, sloppy kiss. Both smiling, they part.

“You're a sap.” John says. Despite his words, John is beaming like the cat that ate the canary  _ and _ got into the cream.

“Says you, dorkapalooza.” Dave snorts, gently setting John down onto the ground.

“Wow, what an insult.” John rolls his eyes, smirking as he heads back outside to collect his bags. Before he brings them in however, he sets down Mitten’s cat carrier and lets her out into the living room, since she's been howling up a storm for a while. She immediately bolts off further into the house.

John carries the food bags inside, moving past the living room and into the kitchen that connects to it. The kitchen is pretty small, but that's fine, John can deal with that. The cupboards are a bit worn and creaky and the bench is...a little stained. It adds a little bit of rustic charm to the place. It's not perfect but it's his.

Arms snake around his middle, startling John a little. He spins around, relaxing when he sees it's just Dave.

“Hey, I put our clothes in our room.” Dave says, motioning in the vague direction of their bedroom.

“And I put down the food bags on the kitchen floor.” John sighs. “We still have the entire car to unpack.”

“That's going to be absolute shit.” Dave chuckles dryly, letting go of John. “At least we don't have to deal with the furniture, that's already been shoved in.”

“Well I made treats for afterwards! They're little chocolate cupcakes, and we can eat them out on the balcony together.” John beams, booping Dave on the nose. He spins on his heel, shuffling back towards the front door, calling over his shoulder a challenge to his boyfriend. “Last one to the car is a rotten egg!”

“Wha-hey!” Dave protests, taking off after John.

The two dash out, both overtaken with the playful competition often found in children. They dash down the hallway and make their way down the stairs. They'll probably get a noise complaint from an annoyed neighbour but in the heat of the moment, neither John nor Dave particularly cares.

Dave makes it to the car first. He tugs at the car handle, but alas, it does not open.

“You need the keys for that Dave!” John calls, now slowed to a walk. A confident smile is on his face as he holds up his car keys for all to see.

“You cheating piece of shit!” Dave yells, glowering at his boyfriend. John just smirks harder, casually strolling around the other side of the car. He waits, letting Dave's impatience grow until he unlocks it with a ‘click’ and a shit-eating grin.

Dave pulls out the bags full of kitchen utensils while John pulls out their blankets and pillows. There are a few things left in the car, but that can be dealt with later.

They make it back inside their apartment, still scrambling to put everything away. Dave technically won John's challenge, but there still is that mild competitive edge between them.

 

A little while later, everything has been taken up from the car and John and Dave find themselves enjoying cupcakes and coffee on their balcony. The balcony extends from their new bedroom, overlooking the street below. There are a few potplants resting on the ground and one on the table on the balcony. They add some niceness to the cement.

The view isn't that great, seeing as they're on the second story and all, but it's still nice to see. They can see the street from down below, paved with trees and lined with cars. John's car is parked just outside the apartment building, and he should really move it to the underground car park below. Whatever. He doesn't care too much right now. He'll do it later.

“This is nice.” John smiles, sipping his coffee.

“Yeah.” Dave looks around a bit. “It's okay. It's a bit small but it was the cheapest thing we could find.”

John laughs, setting down his coffee cup. “God yeah. I love it.”

“I like the fact we're using the second bedroom as my art studio. Like what if your Dad wants to stay over, where is he gonna sleep? On the couch? On the floor? Standing up? Not at all?” Dave says, rambling a little.

“It can be half guest bedroom I guess.” John muses. “Dad's definitely not sleeping on the couch I can tell you that. I'd feel bad for him though, sleeping amongst all your Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff stuff.”

“Hey!” Dave looks insulted, his third cupcake frozen halfway to his mouth.

“I'm only kidding.” John smiles. “Your art is very nice.”

“Gee thanks you sound so sincere.” Dave grumbles, shoving the rest of the cupcake in his mouth.

“I am being sincere!” John pouts. “Your art is good. You'll definitely get noticed here in Seattle. They love art and stuff here apparently.”

“Yeah well lets just hope they like my art.” Dave says, a little dejectedly.

“They will!” John reassures, patting Dave's arm affectionately. “You'll be fine. They'll love you I promise.”

Dave lets out a snort but doesn't say anything against it. “You'll do well in medical school too. You start next week right?”

“Yeah, I do.” John smiles, clutching his coffee cup tightly. “It's gonna be a wild ride I think. I've already had a look at some jobs in the area and I'm going to get my resume sorted and hand it in to some places around here.”

“Jeez, you're prepared.” Dave chuckles, wincing a little as he leans forward to grab yet another cupcake. “I don't even know what's around here, you've done your research. What ones are you hoping to get?”

“I don't know honestly.” John sighs, smiling sadly. “If we could afford it I wouldn't even get a job.” 

“Cheers to that.” Dave raises his mug, in a one-sided toast. “God I have no clue what job I'm gonna get. Probably like, flipping burgers at In and Out or something.”

“Dave, you're a terrible cook. They'd fire you after your first burger.” John chuckles, prompting a glare from Dave.

“John it's fucking In and Out Burger they don't give a shit, I'll get paid less than minimum wage anyway I won't make much.” Dave says, rolling his eyes. Then his annoyed expression fades into one of sadness and...helplessness? “It's just I feel bad dude.”

“What do you mean?” John frowns, suddenly concerned. “Are you okay?”

“It's just, you do so much? You've always worked harder and longer than me and it's taken its toll on you. I've finished my schooling but you've still got med school to go and here you are, immediately searching for possible jobs while I never even  _ considered _ doing that. I'm sitting on my ass all day while you're working yours off.” Dave finishes his rant, a little flushed in the face from all that.

“Dave it's okay.” John smiles. With a loud, jarring scraping sound, John drags his chair to sit next to Dave. “You're not sitting on your ass all day, you're making art! And you'll make it big one day, and you'll make tons of money with your movies and art and stuff.”

Dave just looks at him, a dejected look on his face. John tries harder to reassure him.

“Dave, I love you.” John grabs Dave's hand, intertwining their hands together and squeezing. “And I don't care about money or work or anything like that, as long as I've got you by my side.”

“Thanks…” Dave manages a smile, still worried but not wanting to hassle his boyfriend with it. He decides to change the subject, pointing at the cupcakes John made. “These taste delicious John, like always.”

“Oh! Thanks!” John beams, taking a sneaky second one from the plate. “I made them with love.”

“That's kinda gay dude.” Dave says, grabbing yet another cupcake from the tray.

“Y-You’re kinda gay!” John protests, blushing immediately as he realises his own words.

“Well I mean...I'm bisexual so I am kinda gay.” Dave says, straight face hiding his amusement.

“Ugh sorry I…” John snorts at his own stupidity. John raises his uneaten cupcake, turning to Dave. “Anyway, a toast. To the future. For both of us.”

They hold their cupcakes up and smush them together, creating a cupcake toast. The icing, once so perfectly piped on, now is smushed together, smeared on the star-patterned wrapper. 

“For both of us.” Dave echoes, shoving the cupcake into his mouth, smudged icing or no.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Later they try and get to sleep and suddenly everything is noisy from a party a neighbor is throwing, and they're right by a main road and they realise why the place was so cheap.


	40. 24 Years Old. Skype Calls.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang tm all chat on skype and catch up on their days. Feat Dave's post-modern art.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy! Please tell me what you thought in the comments below :)

“Hey guys!” John beams at his computer, waving at the three girls displayed on the screen. He's leaning over the kitchen table, Dave seated beside him with his hands resting on his chin. It's 6:00 in the afternoon, and they're having their usual Skype call with Rose, Jade and Kanaya. Only it's a little later this time, as John was a little busy with work.

“Hello John!” Jade replies, waving from her seat in the middle of the couch. “Hi Dave!”

“Sup.” Dave waves casually, leaning on the bench too.

“How have you guys been? Sorry I called a little later than usual, I got a bit caught up with work and I couldn't call you guys at the normal time.” John sighs apologetically. 

“Don't worry about it, it's only 9 o'clock at night here. We've already had dinner today so it's not a major distraction.” Rose waves off his concerns. “How was work anyway?”

“Oh…” John makes a face, chuckling a little. “I can't complain, I get paid after all. What about you guys? How was work for you?”

“I can't complain either.” Kanaya pipes up. “While it was a relatively slow day in the shop, I got quite a bit of work done.”

Rose shrugs, clicking her tongue against her teeth. “I got sent home early for back-chatting a manager.”

“Rose!” John gasps, eyes widening in worry. “You shouldn't do that, you'll be fired!”

Rose shrugs once more. “He yelled at me for something I didn't do. So I merely implied that his large ego was overcompensating for something else and he went all red like a tomato and sent me home.”

“Still…” John sighs, worried expression not leaving his face.

“I had fun!” Jade beams, immediately lighting up the atmosphere. “I mean it's still work and all but it's nice to talk to my coworkers about stuff.”

“Were you actually doing any work?” Rose chuckles teasingly.

“Yes!” Jade protests, looking mildly insulted. “I just like to chat while I work!”

“Does anyone want to hear how my day was today?” Dave asks, suddenly speaking. Everyone turns to look at him.

“Well I feel you're about to tell us regardless if we want to or not.” Rose quirks up an eyebrow.

“You'd be right about that.” Dave agrees, nodding. “Ok so I can't remember if I told you guys this or not, but my favourite restaurant is closing down--”

“Why would you have a favourite restaurant when your boyfriend is cooking delicious meals for you every night?” Rose interrupts, narrowing her eyes.

John blushes to the tips of his ears. “Oh jeez Rose, I'm not that good.”

“We like to go out to dinner sometimes! It's called a date, like you would know anything about that.” Dave defends himself. This unfortunately only causes Rose to scrutinize him more.

“You go to  _ your _ favourite restaurant for your dates?” Rose asks.

“No, it's my favourite too!” John laughs it off, wrapping an arm around Dave's shoulders. “It's a really nice Mexican place with homemade food and great cocktails...it's kind of sad it's shutting down.”

“Yeah well, back to my story. So our favourite restaurant is closing down, and I'm trying my hand in protest art.” Dave continues on, despite Rose's criticism.

“It's not as bad as you think.” John laughs at Rose, Jade and Kanaya’s bewildered faces. “It's quite sweet really.”

“It's not meant to be sweet it's meant to be ironic.” Dave complains, huffing. “It's about the effects of large corporations on small, family-run businesses.”

“Dave, even after all this time of your being ‘ironic’ you still don't know what true irony actually is.” Rose says, with a smug little hum.

“I guess you could say that's pretty...ironic, huh?” John jokes. Everyone groans at his pun.

“Why don't you show us Dave?” Jade asks, smiling widely. “I'd love to see what you're painting right now.”

“Yeah! Go on, show them, I'm sure they'll love it!” John agrees with Jade immediately, smiling warmly at Dave.

“Alright alright.” Dave grumbles, making a show of getting off the bench. He scoops up the laptop, facing it outwards so Rose, Jade and Kanaya can see their apartment. “Right this way to my studio.”

“Oh I don't believe we've seen your studio yet.” Kanaya says, tilting her head slightly.

John shuffles along to keep up with Dave, socks slippery on the wooden floor. “It's our spare bedroom really.”

“Yeah, it is.” Dave shrugs. “But at the moment I can't afford a fancy studio so the spare bedroom in our shitty apartment has to do.”

 

Dave leads them down the corridor, shuffling along with socked feet. The windowless hallway is a little dark, but the light of the laptop illuminates the way. John shuffles ahead of Dave and opens the door for him, to make things easier. John flicks on the light, which flickers on after a short pause, revealing to the girls the mess of Dave's studio.

The sight that greets them is an absolute mess. Canvases displaying paintings in various states of completion are leant against the walls. Many different photographs, of John or random landscapes and people line the walls. A computer is tucked away in the corner, a video camera plugged into its port. Dave's self-proclaimed ‘art shit’ is organized neatly on a set of shelves next to the computer--the only neat thing in the room.

“Oh God Dave, you live like this?” Rose's eyes widen at the mess in Dave's studio. Of course she focuses on the mess, regardless of the fact she's the messiest person Dave knows.

“Actually I live next door.” Dave replies, awkwardly setting down the laptop on a stack of used canvases. “Welcome to Studio de Strider.”

“It's...homey?” Kanaya winces in trying to compliment it, always one in favour of a clean workplace. “It's very you.”

“I'll take that as a compliment.” Dave smirks, folding his arms to his chest.

“I love it!” Jade chirps, ever the enthusiast for supporting her friends. “Show me your protest art!”

Dave merely gestures at the canvas mounted in the easel in the centre of the room, half finished and awash with colour. John thinks its a bit weird, not really getting Dave's post-modern approach to art, but he loves it all the same.

“Oooooh I love the colours!” Jade gushes, gesturing at the bright lines of paint covering the painting. 

“Thanks, I made them vivid as possible to represent the delicious flavour combinations from the homemade food they served.” Dave says, holding his head up high.

“And what does the giant red blob represent?” Rose raises an eyebrow at the painting.

“It's not a ‘giant red blob’, it's a clown shoe. It represents the McDonalds that's scheduled to be built in place of the restaurant.”

“Clown shoe?” Kanaya looks...concerned. John can't really blame her, Dave's art has always been confusing.

“Ronald McDonald.”

“Oh. Of course. How could I forget about their beloved mascot.” Kanaya says, shaking her head slightly.

John laughs, pulling up a chair to sit down next to the laptop. “Do you want to give them a mini-tour?”

“They've already seen it all.” Dave says, but still gestures around the room, pointing out things with his fingers. “That's my computer and video camera that I shoot and edit snippets of stuff with, as well as my photographs.” He points at the computer in the corner of the room and all the photos on the walls, then flicking up to the shelves of art supplies. “That's my art shit.” His finger moves to a large pile of canvases in various states of completion. “That's my unfinished and never will be finished art pile.” Dave then turns his finger to a much smaller pile. “And these are my finished works. I also have a commissioned work over there.” He points to a finished portrait of someone unknown to the girls, sitting up straight and proud.

“They're all really good!” John pipes up. “Dave's working up the courage to exhibit them.”

“Yeah.” Dave shrugs, embarrassed. “I've handed some stuff in to like, the library and places that will exhibit it, and I've gotten a few commissions from that but I'm not sure if I'm popular enough or rich enough or have enough works to have a full blown exhibition yet.”

“You should have one! We'll totally go to that!” Jade beams. “We’ll drive across the country and come see you guys! I miss you all so much!”

“Yeah but like I said, exhibits are expensive. I have to supply my own cheese and wine to this shit.” Dave grumbles. “I don't even like cheese and wine, but it needs the fancy exhibition cheese and wine.”

“If you're on a budget, why not ramp up the ‘irony’ and use those cheese dip cracker things and cheap $10 wine?” Rose suggests. “You'll be going against the system by using the system.”

“Hey...that's a pretty good idea.” Dave mumbles, drawing his hand up to rest under his chin. He sort of drifts off into thought, John can almost hear the cogs whirring in his brain.

“How are you guys going with life stuff anyway? Like, non-work life?” John asks, shuffling his chair around so it's in front of the laptop.

“Pretty good! I've finished my first draft of my novel.” Rose smiles, enthused.

“Oh I can't wait to read it! I bet Jade and Kanaya have already!” John beams back.

“No, we're not allowed to read any of Rose's work.” Jade sighs, leaning forward to rest her head in her hands. “Not even to edit it or offer helpful tips.”

“Apparently we'll disrupt her creative process, despite the fact we are her girlfriends and are in fact, here to offer help and support.” Kanaya pointedly stares at Rose, who ignores her glare with a blush.

“I'm not to confident in the draft yet, okay? Give me time.” Rose sighs, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. “And you can't exactly talk either Kanaya, you haven't shown me any of your dress designs yet.”

“Ah. I apologize for that, but you've been so busy I didn't want to distract you from writing your novel. Plus work has been draining, and I've been busy with that.” Kanaya sighs. “I haven't had much time for anything lately. My garden isn't as lush as it used to be. Of course I still water it but I can't put as much care as I can into it.”

Kanaya looks...exhausted and John feels for her. He knows exactly how exhausted she must be--he's exhausted himself. He's balancing two jobs, medical school and spending time with Dave and salvaging what scraps of a social life he has. He knows Rose, Dave and Jade are all in the same boats.

Jade wraps her in a hug while Rose leans over Jade to rub Kanaya’s back comfortingly. “I'm sorry sweetheart. I didn't mean to upset you.”

“I'm sorry, I'm fine, I'm not upset. I'm just a little exhausted at the moment.” Kanaya chuckles, rubbing her eyes. “I apologize for ranting everyone.”

“That shit was nothing don't stress.” Dave interrupts, finally done with his thought process before. “We all understand. We're all stressed and broke as fuck, working well over 38 hours a week and it honestly seems we're going nowhere in life.”

“Jeez Dave, you never were the optimist were you?” John laughs, shooting his boyfriend a teasing smile.

“Just let me get to my point John! Jeez.” Dave rolls his eyes back, acting offended. However his smile betrays his amusement in his boyfriends antics. “Anyway, we're all adults now, yay us, in the real world. It may look shit but we'll be alright in the end. Like John, you'll be all Doctor Egbert in like, five years and then you'll be raking in the big bucks. Jade, you'll get your pHD in a few years time too and you'll be Dr Harley, jesus christ. And Rose you'll probably get published, and Kanaya you'll have your own designer label. Like it's shit now, but we'll get there.”

“Awwww Dave, that's so sweet.” Jade smiles, laughing a little. “Now I feel kind of better about that 9-5 life.”

Dave just shrugs, cocky little smirk on his face.

“Yes. Thank you. I feel a little better now.” Kanaya manages a small smile--the most she's ever given Dave.

“See? He's a massive softie.” John laughs, earning himself a glare from Dave.

“I am not a softie, I'm cool.” Dave deadpans.

“Sure, and I'm Gordon Ramsay.” John rolls his eyes. He gives a joking, cocky grin. “Where's the lamb sauce?”

“Dave, anyone who has to verbally reaffirm the fact that they're cool usually isn't cool.” Rose buts in, ever-present smug smirk on her face.

Dave has no idea how to retaliate to that, so he just stands there, mouth flapping open and shut like a goldfish. Everyone chuckles at Rose's wit, and at Dave's expense.

 

The calm, friendly atmosphere is broken when Jade happens to look down at the time on their laptop and let out a shout of shock.

“It's ten o’clock! I need to go to bed! Work starts at 6 tomorrow, I need sleep!”

“Oh no, it's only ten o’clock.” Rose rolls her eyes at her girlfriends panic. Rose has never had the best sleep cycle.

“Hmm, my work starts early in the morning as well. I'm afraid we should cease talking and go to bed for now.” Kanaya sighs, rubbing at her eyes.

“Oh geez, that's late. We'd better go to bed too.” John's eyes widen in something akin to horror.

“John no, it's only 7 o’clock here.” Dave sighs, resigned and disappointed.

“Oh. Right.” John flushes with embarrassment. “Goodnight then I guess, we'll talk to you a little later.”

“Yeah, nighty night, don't let the bedbugs bite.” Dave smirks.

“Goodnight!!! I miss you both so much!” Jade gushes, pouting sadly.

“We miss you all too!” John replies, eyes sad all of a sudden.

“Goodnight.” Rose gives a little wave, looking a little unperturbed by the sad looks John and Jade are shooting each other. “Have a good rest of your evening.”

“I hope you have a good night's sleep.” Kanaya agrees.

“Goodnight!” John beams, waving them off. “Sleep tight!”

The call ends, leaving the boys staring at their reflections in the dark screens.

“I miss them.” John sighs dejectedly.

“I know.” Dave replies, laying a comforting hand on John's shoulder. “I know.”


	41. 25 Years Old. Filming, Cupcakes and Sexual Awakenings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John bakes cupcakes for Dave, who is in the process of making an indie shit show film.

The smell of freshly baked cupcakes wafts through the kitchen as John wipes down the benches. His cupcakes smell good, but John's timer only says they've been in for fifteen minutes, so he needs to wait another five or so until he can take them out.

Dave is in the lounge room, filming for a film he's working on. It's a very low-budget, one man, one room film, with a strange melodramatic plot about a man suffering from lung cancer from the sounds of it. John's making cupcakes for them, taking care to be quiet as to not distract the filmmaking process. Although there's a lot of yelling going on and the door is closed, so John thinks it shouldn't be too much of a bother. It'll be a nice surprise for them, although Dave can surely smell the cupcakes baking.

John, having finished wiping down the benches, chucks the sponge in the very full sink. He'll do the washing up later, it's his break day today. He pauses, leaning against the bench casually. Listening to the sounds of Dave's college friend (who he bribed to act for him) melodramatically rant about his cancer is...nice, as weird as it sounds. He's proud of Dave for this. For getting out there and submitting things into galleries and art shows and film festivals, even if some of them get rejected. He's gotten a little more popular over the year, and he's gained a bit of a following.

John pushes himself off the bench and out of his thought process to pull out the tray of apple-flavoured cupcakes with the aid of ghostbusters themed oven mitts. They've risen perfectly, golden brown and smelling gorgeous. John sets them down on the kitchen bench to allow them to cool.

His phone buzzes in his pocket, signalling it's ringing. John casually pulls it out, looking at the caller ID. It's Jane, which confuses John. She rarely calls him, preferring to text instead. John swipes the answer button, holding it up to his ear.

“Hello?” John asks. “Jane is that you?”

“Hello John, yes it's me.” Comes the crackly reply of his sister. “I'm sorry to call you all of a sudden like this, are you in the middle of something?”

John looks at the tray of cooling cupcakes on the bench. “Not really, what's up?”

“Not really? John I don't want to interrupt you if you're doing something.” Jane sounds...nervous. John knows his sister well, and she is very rarely nervous.

“I'm fine Jane, I'm just baking cupcakes. What's up? You seem worried.” John asks, concerned. He continues on his icing preparations, pulling out another mixing bowl and beginning to gather icing sugar and butter and a lemon for the icing.

“Well I...something happened last night and I...well I'm not sure what to make of it.” Jane sounds a little flustered and John immediately panics. ‘something happened last night’? That doesn't sound good. Jane isn't the sort to get herself mixed up into trouble.

“Are you okay? What happened?”

“I'm fine, it's not what you're thinking...It's just...I…” Jane trails off, seemingly too nervous to talk.

“You what?” John urges, pausing in his measurement of icing sugar.

“I...I had sex with Roxy last night.” Jane admits. John can almost feel her embarrassment over the phone. “It was the first time I'd done it with a girl, heck, the first time I've done it period and I don't know what to do afterwards.”

“Roxy as in Rose's sister?” John's mouth drops open in shock. He always thought Jane was straight, judging by the numerous boys she had crushes on and would not shut up about to him.

“Do you happen to know of any other Roxys?” Jane hisses her reply.

“No, but I'm just making sure.” John says, now resuming making his lemon icing. He cuts the lemon in half, grinding it against the juicer and collecting the juice in the bottom. “So you two fucked last night.”

“Don't put it like that!” Jane protests. John can almost see her red face as if it was right in front of him.

“But that's what you did, you fucked.” John says, matter-of-factly. 

Jane sighs. “Look, I need your advice, not your mockery.”

“Alright, alright. I'll stop making fun of you. What advice do you need?” John smiles, beginning to mix the lemon icing mixture in the mixing bowl.

“Well, all my life I've had crushes on men, and last night I had my first time with a woman. My head is all confused and I don't know what to do. You're my brother, and you're gay, what made you realise this?” Jane asks.

“Ah well...it's complicated. It would be a definite different experience for me than to you.” John starts, digging around in his brain to word it correctly. “That's not a bad thing, finding out I was gay was kind of confusing to me too. I had a bit of internal homophobia going on and I was insecure of myself. I dated Rose because I was worried about my growing attraction to guys. I thought...being with a girl might quell those thoughts but they didn't. But you Jane, you've always liked guys. It's really your thing to discover, not mine. Just because you had sex with a woman doesn't make you a lesbian. You could be bi or pan or whatever. I don't exactly know how to help. I'll try but I can't make promises.”

“I'm just not sure to feel. I loved Roxy as a friend before, but now I don't know what to think.” Jane sighs. “Gosh my head sure is muddled.”

“Well do you regret it?” John asks, one-handedly scooping the lemon icing into a piping bag.

“Regret what?” Comes the bewildered reply.

“Having sex with her.” John states matter-of-factly, crossing over the kitchen to his tray of cupcakes, piping bag in hand.

“No...I don't.” Jane admits after a long pause. “Oh goodness I don't regret it at all.”

“That's great Jane. If you're serious about her why don't you ask her on a date to a cafe or something?” John suggests, piping on the lemon icing in little swirls. “Usually you do the dates before having sex but it's a bit too late for that now.”

“Oh, I'm not too sure about that…” Jane trails off. “I mean yeah I enjoyed last night, but she's my best friend, she has been for years. I don't know how to feel about this.”

“Dave's my best friend, we're going good.” John helpfully supplies.

“That doesn't help, although it's nice to hear you're doing well I guess.” Jane sighs.

“Look, ugh, I'm bad at this. Just...see how it goes. There's no harm in trying, is there?” John says, putting the finishing touches on the icing. Having earlier prepared some lemon zest, John generously sprinkles it on top of the cupcakes. “I mean obviously there's something there if you had sex last night so why not give you and her a shot? I don't know Roxy too well but she seems nice.”

“Oh she is…” Jane sighs once more. “Alright I'll do it. I'll ask her out.”

“That's great Jane! I'm proud of you.” And John is, genuinely. Jane is his sister; stubborn, independent and businesslike yet very kind. She's got the beginnings of her own cafe after graduating from culinary school a year back. She's doing well for herself.

“Oh gosh listen to me, all talking about myself when I haven't even asked how you've been.” Jane sounds truly very embarrassed. “So um, how have you been?”

“Oh, I've been good! I've retaken up piano recently--there's a communal one down in the communal area in our apartment block and I've taken to playing that. I know lessons were a pain in the ass as a kid, but now I've really started to enjoy it.” John says, answering Jane's question. “Probably some weird adulthood thing. Or maybe the fact I'm not being forced to play it?”

“Oh, that's good. How's medical school going for you?” Jane asks again. She seems better now, having recovered from her gay panic from earlier, which relieves John to no end.

“Oh it's so good, I'm learning so much.” John gushes, looking up with a smile on his face. “I've got one more year, and then next year I have my internship. Being unpaid will suck, but it'll all be worth it.”

“It's great to hear you're doing well. Dad's so proud of you.” Jane says.

“Oh I know, he's told me...a lot.” John chuckles, beginning to plate the cupcakes. “I'm not even a doctor yet, but he's always going on about it. It's really sweet, but it's getting a bit annoying. Anyway, how's your cafe going?”

“It's going great! Business is booming as they say. It's a little bit of a struggle sometimes, but it's been amazing so far.” Jane replies, an excited tone to her voice. “The community loves us, I get a lot of customers complimenting my cooking.”

“That's really good to hear, your cooking is so good.” John sighs. He must admit that deep down, he's jealous of Jane's success. She's got her own successful business up and running while he's still fucking around trying to get his doctorate and working minimum wage jobs. They're the exact same age, they should be at the same spot in life, but they're not. She's done so much better than him. He refuses to let it show however, forcing out all his pride for his sister. “I'm proud of you, you're doing so well. Dave and I will have to have lunch there some time.”

“Of course! But just letting you know now, you're not getting a free meal out of me.” Comes the quick-fire reply. 

“I wouldn't have it any other way.” John replies, rolling his eyes. Jane's an excellent businesswoman, sure, but she's a bit of a stinge with her money. There's no use arguing, and besides, she does need money.

“Alright, well, I'd better get going and leave you to your cupcakes.” Jane sighs. “Thank you for the advice.”

“Of course, it's no problem Jane. If you need any more advice, don't hesitate to call me. I miss you.” John smiles wistfully.

“Oh, I miss you too little brother.” Jane sighs. “I hope to see you soon.”

“Me too!” John says rather loudly, before quickly lowering his voice guiltily. Dave is still filming after all. “Bye Jane.”

“Goodbye John.” Jane replies. 

The phone beeps the hang-up dial tone as Jane hangs up the phone. John switches his phone onto standby and shoves it back into his pocket. It was nice to talk to Jane, even if it was relatively brief.

 

John looks down at the plate of cupcakes he's prepared. They look and smell delicious, so John doesn't feel the need to taste them. He'll eat them in a minute anyway.

Picking up the plate, John walks over to the closed door that connects the kitchen and the lounge room. Swinging it open, he casually leans against the doorframe and looks at Dave's set. Their lounge room has been completely rearranged for Dave's film, and John absolutely hates it. The lights have been dimmed and glow sticks are scattered on the floor. John decides not to ask. “You still filming in here?”

Dave whirls around, a little startled. His expression immediately relaxes upon seeing John, eyes darting down towards the cupcakes. “No, we're in between takes at the moment.”

“Well, I made you some snacks.” John smiles, holding out the plate to Dave. He winks. “There's a surprise inside.”

“Why thank you.” Dave flashes John a small smile before plucking one off the plate. Peeling off the wrapper, he bites it in half. Dave's eyes widen slightly underneath his shades as he takes in the ‘surprise’.

“Is the apple slice at the bottom the surprise?” Dave asks, holding up the other half of his cupcake. “Because it added a nice crunch to my cupcake, I like it.”

“Yep.” John smiles, offering the plate to Dave's college friend. He takes a cupcake, mumbling a thank you under his breath. John doesn't really know this guy, but it's strange to see someone so shy and restrained when earlier he was so loud and dramatic. “I thought you might like a snack after working so hard.”

“Thank you.” Dave gives John a brief yet genuine smile. “It's delicious, like always.”

“Aw, thanks.” John beams, eyes drifting over to the set Dave is working with. It's their lounge room, but it's been redesigned to look like someone else's apartment. As the film is very low budget, the original furniture is still in place, just rearranged. John hates it, but Dave has promised to fix it when the filming is complete. “Need any help?”

“Yes, actually.” Dave says, leaning down and hoisting up a bag full of bubble wands. “So we're filming a scene where Lucien’s character over here is trying LSD for the first time. I need you to blow these bubbles around to enhance the whole ‘drugged up’ effect.”

“I'm not even going to ask, or tell you that that isn't what happens when you take LSD.” John chuckles, taking a few bubble wands out of the bag. “Let me guess, the bubbles represent the different scenes in his life or some poetic bullshit like that?”

“Yes, exactly that. Now you're thinking like an artist John.” Dave claps his hands together, spinning around back to manage his video camera set up on a tripod. “Alright! We're going back into action! Lucien, finish that fucking cupcake because we need to get these cameras rolling, there's only so much time John can stand the lounge room looking like this.”

“Sorry…” Lucien mumbles, folding up the wrapper neatly and shuffling back behind the scenes to place it in the bin. He shuffles back over to his starting position, taking his place on the couch.

“Alright so this is going to be a close-up, I need wonder, fear and anxiety from you Lucien--remember, this is supposed to numb the pain of your disease.” Dave is now in full-on director mode, ordering around the actor and placing the camera right on the coffee table, aimed directly at Lucien seated on the couch. “John I need some big, beautiful bubbles from you, okay baby?”

“Sure thing babe.” John smiles, unscrewing the lid of the bubble wand and positioning himself behind and slightly to the right of the camera.

“Alright, and action!” Dave shouts. Lucien begins mumbling to himself, whispering about who knows what. John blows in a few bubbles. They float across the screen and past Lucien too--reflecting the light from the glowsticks.

If John knew beforehand this was what his day would entail, he'd be pretty weirded out, but not entirely unsurprised. Jane coming to him for advice on her sexual reawakening sure was a surprise, but the whole ‘blowing bubbles at Dave's college friend as he squirms about on a glowstick covered couch’ thing wasn't too much of a surprise. He wasn't imagining this specific, exact scenario would happen to him this morning, but hey, his life is pretty hectic. But, as John watches Dave determinedly work his movie magic, tongue poking slightly out of his mouth, John knows he wouldn't have it any other way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dave didn't technically need those bubble wands or the glow sticks, but he saw them for like... $1 each at target and was like 'fuck yeah i need this shit'
> 
> Also Lucien is just someone I made up on the spot. At first the college friend was going to be Eridan but I intently dislike Eridan and I don't want him in this so I didn't put him in.
> 
> Anyway enjoy! Don't forget to leave a comment down below to tell me if you liked it or not!


	42. 26 Years Old. Auctions and Exhibitions.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave holds an art exhibition and gets more than he bargained for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sitting in the school library and down on the oval below some younger years are having a shit fight. I don't know if they're serious or not but either way its great to watch.

“So as you can see here, this one is about how big businesses make billions of dollars while small families are suffering.” Dave explains, gesturing at his artwork.

“Ah. Right.” Dirk replies, looking a little confused at the various red, orange and yellow lines dashed across the canvas.

“Don't worry Dirk, I don't understand how it symbolises that either.” John chuckles, leaning around from his spot by Dave's side to look at Dirk. 

“Alright, alright, please stop making fun of me.” Dave sighs. “I'm working hard on this, this is my life. You just don't understand the...the grand significance of this artwork in the grand scheme of things. Like in fucking 50 years time or some shit, this artwork will be a case study for a senior year art class, and they'll have to write essays about its significance in protest art. They'll grow to hate it, and bitch about it to their friends, and later to their children, and my painting will live on their minds forever.”

“Dave, has all that cheese and wine you had earlier gone to your head?” John asks, looking up at Dave with a smirk on his face. “You're acting stuck up and fucking weird, like everyone else in this place.”

It's a big night for Dave. This is the night of his first exhibition, showing a wide range of his paintings and some of his films, complete with cheap wine and cheese and an auction later in the evening. A lot of people have shown up to see this exclusive, one-day only exhibition. The gallery is packed with a lot more people than Dave expected, all admiring the artworks on display.

“Okay, that's enough bullying me for one night. Let's move on.” Dave guides John and Dirk to the next painting over--a mass of black oil paint applied thickly covering a pinkish-hued arm, with red ribbons of paint dripping down from the arm. “This next painting portrays my feelings when Mittens scratched me and John laughed at me.”

“I didn't laugh!” John protests. “I gave you a Hello Kitty bandaid and kissed it better after you whined about it for half an hour!”

“Yes you did John! You laughed at me and then told me to, and I quote ‘suck shit Strider’.” Dave turns back to John, widening his eyes. He places a hand on his chest, mock offended. “That hurt even more than the cat scratch.”

“Yeah, but then I gave you a Hello Kitty bandaid and kissed you better.” John smiles wide, teasing expression on his face. “And then you complained about it a lot and painted this in an evening.”

“Well I'm just putting it out there now, I didn't laugh at you this morning when you stubbed your toe on the coffee table. Because I'm a nice boyfriend like that.” Dave sniffs. 

“Oh Dave, you're such a big baby.” John chuckles.

“It's interesting, I'll give you that little bro.” Dirk interrupts, looking very awkward at their argument. “There's a lot of emotions in it.”

“That would be the feeling of pain, loss and absolute betrayal.” Dave supplies.

“Right.” Dirk deadpans, staring again at the artwork. “You know I'm not good with this art shit.”

 

“Dave!” A familiar voice calls out from across the gallery. Dave turns around just in time to see Jade running towards him and sweeping him up in a big, bone-crushing hug. “I'm so sorry we’re late! There was this big traffic jam a few hours back and finding parking in this place was a lot harder than you'd think.”

“That's fine Jade, I'm just glad you're here.” Dave lets out a rare smile as he's engulfed in a hug. He gives a little wave to Rose and Kanaya, who are slowly making their way over to the group.

“It's great to see you guys! I've missed you both so much.” Jade beams, releasing Dave from the hug. She turns to John, arms wide. “C’mere John!”

Both laughing, Jade wraps her arms around John in a big hug. Rose and Kanaya walk up to Dave, looking at Jade with amusement on their faces.

“It's good to see you Dave.” Rose hums.

“It's been quite a while since we last saw each other in person.” Kanaya gives a little wave. “I trust you are well?”

“Oh yeah I'm good, it's good to see you too.” Dave smirks, leaning back. “Glad you could make it to this shit show.”

“Hmmm. Yes, it does look like a shit show.” Rose muses, glancing around the exhibition area. Dave gives her an insulted look, which she ignores.

John and Jade break apart, each stepping back a little bit. Jade looks Dirk up and down, only waving a greeting.

“Yeah, I was just giving Dirk and John a tour of the place, do you want to join or just look around independently.” Dave asks, linking arms with John again.

“Oh well I'm not too sure, I think a tour of the place sounds nice.” Rose decides for her girlfriends.

“Alright then, let the shit show commence.” Dave smirks. “Now this painting right behind us is called ‘betrayal of the most tragic kind’, and I was just telling Dirk the deep meaning behind the piece.”

“Deep meaning my ass.” John mumbles under his breath. Rose lets out a dignified snort.

“It portrays my feelings during one of the worst betrayals of my life.” Dave pointedly ignores John's comment while Jade nods thoughtfully at the art work.

“That's so sad Dave, what happened?” Jade asks, sympathetic expression on her face.

“Mittens scratched me and John laughed at me.” Dave stares at the painting, eyes wistful.

“Oh.” Jade frowns, clearly taken back. “Um…”

“Anyway, moving on! There's a whole gallery of shit to see.” Dave snaps back into reality, walking quickly over to the next painting and practically dragging John behind him. This forces Dirk, Rose, Jade and Kanaya to hurry after them. Dave moves past several paintings, each more interesting than the last. Dave ignores them, ignores the people who stop and stare as he passes. He stops abruptly in front of a large portrait that has already attracted a somewhat large crowd.

“Is that…?” Rose begins, staring up at the portrait with the same awe the rest of the audience is. A harmony of colours--blues, golds and browns--make up a portrait of John. Portrait-John is smiling, a cheerful and mischievous glint in his blue eyes.

“Yeah.” Dave awkwardly scuffs his shoes against the floor as John blushes furiously. “It's the least shit thing in the gallery, and pretty much the only thing not up for auction.”

John blushes even more furiously, especially when a few people turn around to stare at them in recognition of Dave's voice. “Dave wants to sell pretty much all of his paintings tonight. I tried to convince him not to sell all of them but he insisted. I managed to convince him not to sell a few.”

“Eh, we need the money. And it's not like these pieces of shit will sell for much anyway. I'd probably have to pay people to actually take them.” Dave shrugs.

“That would be pretty funny. Reverse capitalism.” Dirk snorts a laugh, startling everyone in the group except Dave.

“What exactly are you auctioning off Dave?” Jade asks, squinting at the painting in front of her.

“Like John said, pretty much everything.” Dave shrugs again, smirking. His tone becomes slightly more serious. “Well, everything marked with that red sticker.”

“Speaking of the auction, when will it be held?” Kanaya asks curiously.

“In an hour, pretty much.” Dave replies. “So you guys have plenty of time to look around.”

“We may just do that. We'd love to catch up more with you but we'd also like to see the entire exhibition. We have plenty of time to catch up later, we're staying over the weekend.” Rose hums thoughtfully. “The three of us may go off on our own for a bit, just to have a proper look around. We'll meet back up at the auction?”

“Uh, yeah?” Dave says. “Sure thing. There's another room with films and stuff if you want to check that out, there's also a lot of cheese and wine on the house which you'll probably need. Have fun.”

“Alright, sounds good, see you in an hour!” Jade calls over her shoulder, linking arms with both Rose and Kanaya.

“I should do my own thing too. I am  _ not _ third wheeling for the rest of the night.” Dirk pipes up. He shrugs slightly, stepping away from his brother. “I'll let you two do your thing. I'll catch up with you guys at the auction.”

With a wave, he's off, wandering in the opposite direction that Rose, Jade and Kanaya went in. If Dave's insulted by being ditched, he doesn't show it. Instead he turns to John, a small smile on his face. “I really fucking hope this shit sells.”

“It will, don't worry!” John reassures him, leaning his head on Dave's arm, not tall enough to reach his shoulder. “You've got a very loyal fanbase from the looks of it. I mean, look at the turn out. This place is packed!”

“I know. I wasn't expecting this many people.” Dave says. “Honestly I'm super flattered.”

“You should be! I'm all flattered for you.” John beams, looking around the gallery once more.

Dave lets out a snort of amusement. “You wanna look at everything else with the others or raid the servers for wine and cheese dip?”

“Well since I've pretty much seen everything here at some point or other, I say raid the servers for cheese and wine.” John nods, narrowing his eyes to scope out the scene for the nearest server. He points one out as soon as he sees one, dragging Dave over by the arm.

The server seems a little taken aback at their sudden approach, but still serves them with a unique level of professionalism. John hands a glass of wine to Dave, thanking the server as he takes one for himself. Dave grins cockily, clinking his wine glass against John's in a toast.

 

Later, an hour later to be specific, as John and Dave have had their fill of cheese and wine and Rose, Jade, Kanaya and Dirk have had their fill of Dave's artwork, the auction begins.

The all meet up in the front row seats, reserved for the occasion. Dirk sits to the left of Dave, with John linking arms with Dave's right and chatting animatedly with Jade, who's holding hands with Rose, who in turn is holding hands with Kanaya.

“It's amazing, honestly Jade. My internship is great, I'm learning so much and getting so much experience. It's every weekday 9-5, and I have to work 10-9 on Saturday and Sunday for the money, which is exhausting but…” John says. As the auction technically hasn't started yet, he can technically be as loud as he wants.

“Yikes, that sucks.” Jade wrinkles up her nose. 

“Not really, it's what I signed up for.” John shrugs. “Anyway how have you been?”

“Oh I've been great! We've all been great! My own internship in that lab is going great, at the moment we're developing this chemical that makes things glow, using the natural bioluminescence of deep sea creatures! And…” Jade's voice lowers as she leans in closer to John. “I'm not supposed to tell you guys this but…” She glances back at Rose and Kanaya, and only when she's sure they're not listening does she continue. “We  _ might _ be moving to Seattle.”

“Holy shit Jade!” John half shouts in excitement, eyes wide with excitement.

“What?” Dave frowns, looking at John with alarm.

“Oh umm…” John's eyes dart to Jade's worried face and back to Dave. “Nothing, sorry. Jade was telling me about her lab stuff, like bioluminescence and stuff.”

“Oh, okay. Glowy stuff, of course you're excited about that.” Dave rolls his eyes, leaning back.

“What's that supposed to mean?” John protests, frowning.

“Nothing, I'm just keeping you in suspense.” Dave hums, smirking. John lets out a sulky huff.

“Ladies and gentlemen!” A voice booms from the stage. “I hope you have your wallets and your bidding minds ready, because the auction is now starting.”

A hush falls over the audience. Dave shuffles in nervous anticipation.

“We have quite a large collection of works up for auction, all starting at relatively low prices. Every bid will add 20 dollars to the bid until we reach the finishing price. So now, without further ado, let the auction begin.”

“Hey Dave, how much are these things going for anyway?” Dirk hisses, leaning over the seat.

“Not much at all, only like a hundred bucks at the most.” Dave shrugs. “I got them valued, and advised to set the starting prices a little lower than their value.”

“Now this work is the first in the line up.” The auctioneer begins, gesturing at the artwork propped up beside him. “Its title is ‘killing two birds with one stone.’ As you can see, inspiration comes from Vincent Van Gogh judging by the texture of oil paints in the sky. The two birds are clearly representing the feelings of hope and innocence, being shot out of the sky by the hands of death. I'll start the bidding at $100.”

“That was not my intention at all.” Dave whispers, leaning close to John to whisper into his ear. “I saw kids playing outside on the road and they were throwing rocks and shit at the birds that sit on the telephone lines. I was bored and they wouldn't shut up so I painted this.”

“Well I mean whatever makes it sound artier I guess.” John shrugs.

“Do I hear $120? $140? $160?” The auctioneer continues, pointing at bidders as they may their bids with lightning speed. “$180, $200?”

Dave seems a little taken aback at the speed the price is rising to, although he tries to hide it. That however fails when the number rises above the $500 mark. “Holy shit…”

“Do I hear $600? $620? $640? $660?” The auctioneer continues, not even breaking a sweat.

John beams up at Dave, wrapping both arms around Dave's arm tightly.

“$800? $820? $840?” By now it's just a bidding war between two people, both standing up and shouting over the top of each other.

Dave has taken to staring at the floor, mouth wide open in amazement.

“$980? Any higher than $980? Ah! $1000! We've hit four digits folks!” Unfortunately, it appears one of the bidders has capped their budget, and they sheepishly sit back down. The other bidder grins smugly to himself. “Going...going...gone! To the lovely gentlemen up the back for $1000!”

Dave makes a strangled noise at the back of his throat that sounds like a mix between a cough and him choking to death. “Holy shit.”

“Holy shit.” John parrots, sharing Dave's flabbergasted look.

“Congrats little brother.” Dirk pats Dave on the back. “Who valued it by the way? Because they were very wrong.”

“I...the gallery did it. They offered it free because I was holding the auction on site.” Dave says, still in that dazed voice of his.

“Well you should probably ask them to redo their calculation. Or you know, not use them again. The final amount was ×10 of the starting bid.” Dirk says.

“Well actually these people are professionals in the art word. They know what sells and what doesn't--they're the ones who dictate it so. Since you're an emerging artist they probably assumed you wouldn't sell for much, but it seems they underestimated the true demand for your work.” Rose leans forward to look at Dave. “Although perhaps this painting was just an outlier, and the rest of the paintings will be the predicted price.”

“I didn't realise you knew so much about the art world Rose.” Kanaya says, tone curious.

“Oh well, you know how I like to study up on things that pique my interest from time to time.” Rose hides a blush under her hand.

“But it's amazing it sold for so much!” John beams, wrapping Dave in a very tight hug. “I'm so proud of you.”

“Don't forget us when you're famous.” Dirk jokes, smirking.

“Of course I won't, how could I forget your ugly mug?” Dave jokes, voice returning to its usual cockiness.

“Oh excuse you.” Dirk huffs, folding his arms against his chest. But despite his words, he's not really mad. He knows his brother is only joking.

“Sold! To the young lady up the back with the purple hair!” The auctioneer has continued with the auction, selling the next painting in the line up.

“Oh shit, I missed what that one sold for.” Dave grumbles, rubbing his head.

“It sold for $680.” Kanaya interjects.

Dave's jaw drops so low that if it was any lower, it would be on the floor.

 

The night continues like this. Dave was only expecting $2000 from the night, but he ended up making around $20000. It was a surprise to say the least. Of course approximately 40% goes to the gallery for holding the exhibition and auction, but that still leaves Dave with $12000. And well, if he treats his friends to dinner at a very fancy restaurant that night, who can blame him.

Dirk, a fan of his brothers work since Dave was six and doodling stick figures in art class, buys something from the auction. Dave immediately tries to pay him back, but Dirk refuses. Jade cheers him on, as always, reminiscing in a story of when they were younger and Dave's drawings from then. Rose proceeds to nag Dave about the lack of Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff artwork, because surely he'd love to display his proudest creation? Kanaya never really knew Dave as a child, or much of his artistic career except for the later years, but she still shakes his hand in a congratulations. John keeps his and Dave's arms linked all night, telling anyone who will listen about his amazingly talented boyfriend.

Dave finds it hard to contain his excitement, but still greets his fans with his cool persona and calm voice. He keeps holding onto that persona until much later, when he is alone with John in their apartment. Now $12000 richer, he collapses into John's arms, sobbing tears of pride, amazement and gratitude.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! Please leave a comment below if you enjoyed it :)
> 
> So Dave sold around 20 artworks, in case you were wondering.


	43. 27 Years Old. Happy Birthday?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's John's birthday. Dave attempts to cook him breakfast before he goes to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoy! Please tell me what you thought below, I crave validation

John has never liked waking up early in the morning. Unfortunately for him, he now has to get up at the crack of dawn every morning for work. Despite today being his (27th, christ he's getting old) birthday, he still has to get up early. What a pain.

It's in the early mornings like these that John wishes he isn't going for his doctorate, but something much simpler that doesn't require getting up at 5 in the morning. Those thoughts are banished quickly however, as John is in this to help others, not himself.

John rolls over to Dave's side of the bed to find some warmth and comfort, only to find it empty. That's weird. Usually Dave is still asleep, with his wings lying on top of John. It's a sweet thing he does, has done ever since they were 19 and first began sharing the same bed. Dave is a little embarrassed by it, but John thinks it’s sweet. Dave's side of the bed is cold, and John finds no usual comfort there.

Grumbling to himself, John drags himself out of bed. The air is unusually cool against his bare skin as he fumbles against his nightstand for his glasses. The room comes into focus as he slips them on. Still no Dave.

He's probably on the toilet or something, he often likes to take one really early in the morning so he can lay in bed for as long as possible without being uncomfortable. John thinks the amount of detail he puts into explaining that is gross. The whole thing is gross.

John stumbles over to their shared closet, pulling out his work clothes--just a checked shirt and some clean pants, his proper scrubs are kept at the hospital. John lays them out on the bed, taking a brief moment to look at them and think.

He's almost there, isn't he? Just another year and a half of working at a rural hospital, and he'll be an official, non-prac work doctor. Just the thought makes him so nervous. He knows how proud dad is of him, but he wonders if his mother would be as well. She died when he was four, so he doesn't much about her, but dad has assured him she would be.

A burnt smell distracts John from his thoughts. He bolts up, forgetting about getting dressed and focussing solely on the burning smell. The piercing scream of the fire alarm starts up, shrill and unapologetic.

“Dave!” He stumbles out of their bedroom, across the corridor and into the kitchen, the source of the smell.

Dave looks up at him, an immensely guilty look on his face. He's wearing a pair of baggy red pyjama pants and John's Ghostbusters shirt that he thought he lost a few months back. The toaster is spewing out smoke, filling the room with the haze and stench of burnt toast.

“Happy birthday?” It comes out as a question, as Dave smiles sheepishly at John.

John's worried gaze softens and he lets out a sigh of relief. “Dave…”

“I'm sorry, I tried to cook you breakfast before you went to work, but I accidentally burnt the toast. The eggs and bacon are fine though.” Dave mumbles, gesturing towards two plates topped with scrambled eggs and crispy bacon.

“It's okay Dave, that's so sweet of you.” John smiles, walking over to the toaster and plucking out the blackened and smoking pieces of toast from the toaster and chucking them in the bin. “It can be easily fixed. Can you turn off the fire alarm though? It's starting to get on my nerves.”

“Sure thing.” Dave pulls out one of the stools from the kitchen bench and climbs on top of it, reaching upwards to press the button on the smoke alarm. Ah, finally blessed silence.

John pops four fresh pieces of bread inside the toaster. He glances over at the two plates set out and smiles softly. His Dave is such a sweetheart, prepping a birthday breakfast and all.

“I'm sorry I burnt it.” Dave looks as guilty as a kicked dog as he takes John's hand. “I just wanted to make you breakfast in bed for your birthday.”

“I'm not mad Dave.” John gives him a wide and genuine smile. “You just burnt the toast. It was a really sweet gesture, and the bacon and eggs look good.”

“Thanks, I looked up a recipe online and everything to make it perfect for you. I have your present in the living room, but you can't see it until you eat breakfast.” Dave gestures towards the living room before pointing at their plates.

The toast pops up from the toaster, crisp and golden. John lets go of Dave's hand to plop them down on their respective plates. He scoops out margarine from the tub and spreads it on the toast. Dave rests his chin on John's shoulder, watching as the margarine melts over the bread.

“I think this is your one?” John says, questioning tone in his voice as he hands Dave the plate.

“It is yeah, thanks.” Before John can stop him, Dave plucks the other plate out of John's hands and sets them both down on the kitchen bench. Pulling out a stool, Dave gestures for John to sit down.

John obliges, sappy smile on his face. “Thank you.”

“Happy birthday John.” Dave says, very sincerely as he sits opposite John. He pulls out a card, seemingly from nowhere and hands it to John.

The card is brightly coloured, nauseating shades of blue and green with a pop-up cartoon orange monster character on the front. ‘Congratulations, birthday boy, you're 27!’ reads the card in large bubble writing, all except the ‘2’, which is hastily scrawled on in black sharpie. Dave looks like he's struggling to contain his laughter.

“Oh, what a comical genius you are.” John deadpans, looking Dave dead in the eye. Be opens up the card, reading the heartfelt message inside.

_ ‘Dear John, happy birthday! You're 27 now, you're getting so old. It seems like only yesterday you were 26.’ _ John decides not to mention the fact that Dave is older than him. _ ‘Time does fly by when you're having fun. I hope you have a great day, filled with nerd stuff and happiness and all that good shit. I love you so much, love Dave.’ _

John's eyes crinkle in happiness as a large smile spreads itself across his face. “Oh, c’mere you.” John leans across the table and lands a soft, squished kiss on Dave's lips.

“Oh…” Dave shares in John's smile.

“Thank you again. For all this.” John leans back, picking up his fork and shovelling a spoonful of scrambled egg in his mouth. His eyes light up in surprise. “Oh! This is surprisingly really good!”

“I used a Paula Deen recipe, since she's the absolute shit.” Dave puffs up his chest in pride, purposely ignoring the ‘surprisingly’ comment.

“Well you did a good job.” John munches, scraping up scrambled egg and bacon to pile it on the crispy golden toast.

“I'm sorry I couldn't serve it to you in bed. I know you've got work all day today and I wanted you to start off your day right.” Dave grimaces down at his plate.

“Hey, it's okay, I don't mind. As long as I get to eat it with you.” John reasons, shoving the scrambled egg, bacon and toast ×3 combo into his mouth.

Dave snorts. “You're a sap.”

“But I'm your sap.” John smiles happily at Dave, distractedly chewing with his mouth wide open. “And I love you.”

Dave's eyes soften and he hides his blush in a mouthful of scrambled egg.

The rest of the breakfast is eaten in silence. However it is one filled with the same shy glances they gave each other when they first started dating. The food is, as John would call it, unusually good for Dave's cooking. And he's grateful for that.

 

“Alright, time for presents!” Dave promptly gets up from the table, pushing his stool back with a resounding screech. He immediately heads for the living room, flinging open the door.

“What about the washing up?” John hurries after him.

“Don't worry about it, I'll do it afterwards.” Dave pauses. “Do you think I should blindfold you, for a surprise?”

“Fuck no you're not.” John scowls, glowering up at Dave. Dave hides a snicker behind his hand.

“I'm kidding. Or am I?”

“You'd better be.” John huffs.

Dave leads John into the living room, holding onto his hand tightly. Standing there with a giant silver bow stuck to its surface is a grand piano.

“Dave. Holy shit.” John gasps.

“Well I thought since you've been playing piano a whole bunch, you'd want one of your own?” Dave says, looking unsure all of a sudden. “And to be perfectly honest, I love hearing you play.”

John blushes at the compliment, reaching forward to ghost his fingers across the keyboard. A short, sweet melody is played on his fingertips, shy, yet excited.

John turns to Dave, eyes filled with joy. “Thank you so much!”

“Hey, the days not over yet, we still got the birthday dinner tonight!” Dave brings John into a hug. “Everyone there will bring you your presents and stuff. And then maybe later...we could have birthday sex?”

“Well, I'll be pretty tired and cleaning up after people shitting themselves today, so I might not be in the mood…” John winks. “We’ll just have to see.”

“Great. Cool cool cool. Can't wait.” Dave mumbles awkwardly, ears going red.

“What a romantic.” John snorts, rolling his eyes. “But in all seriousness, you're the best boyfriend I could ever ask for. Thank you again for all this.”

“It's no trouble really, I just really want you to have a good day. I hope you don't have to clean up too much shit or anything.” Dave says, which John winces at.

“Gee thanks Dave, you make my job sound so rewarding and dignified.” John glances up at the clock on the wall above to kitchen door--4:30. “Shit, that late already? I've got to get changed and stuff in order to make it in by 8 and avoid all that traffic.”

Dave winces, looking very sympathetic towards John. He squeezes his hand, rubbing a thumb over John's fingers. “I hope you have a good day at work, and a very happy birthday.”

John leans upwards and plants a kiss on Dave's lips. “I'll text you on my breaks.”

“I'm counting on it.” Dave winks, shooting finger guns after John. John just snorts, letting go of Dave and retreating back towards their bedroom.

 

Later, John is travelling along a long and quiet highway, absentmindedly tapping his fingers against the steering wheel. He's 27 now, that's so weird. He's getting old.

He's got an amazing boyfriend and a job at a rural hospital as a prac doctor that's bringing in quite the salary. Maybe...maybe it's time to settle down a little bit. Maybe get married or something. John's always loved the thought of children. Maybe it's time for some of his own?

John shakes his head, clearing those thoughts. Not now. He's still got his doctorate to earn. Dave's busy too, he doesn't need kids right now.

John focuses on the road ahead, determined to get to his destination on time. After all, he has a job to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've been watching the Netflix A Series of Unfortunate Events and I got up to hostile hospital part 2 and I forgot how messed up it was? Like that particular operating table scene, I love asoue. Anyone else been watching the Netflix series? Am I attracting that sort of crowd?


	44. 28 Years Old. Resturant Date.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave takes John on a date to a fancy resturant, and John brings up something that's been bugging him for a while.

The Nightingale Restaurant is lively, air filled with chatter and the sound of cutlery against plates. The decor is rich and fancy--dark wooden walls decked with exquisite oil paintings. Tables of mahogany are decked with velvet tablecloths, candles and flowers. The place is absolutely packed, as it would be, being the fanciest 5 star restaurant in town.

It would be a long wait, had Dave not already reserved a fancy and romantic table for two. But even with the reservation it's still taking a while to get seated. The line is long and quite frankly, boring.

Eventually they make it to the front of the line, patience running a little thin. The apologetic, panicked look on the host's face stops them from complaining. John's been in his position before, it's not fun.

“Hey I have a reservation for two? Under Strider.” Dave says. The man looks down at the clipboard in his hands and then back up at John and Dave.

“Uh, right this way to your table sirs.” He stutters, gesturing ahead as he leads them towards their table.

Their table is a small two seater, decked out with a vase of roses and several lit pillar candles. Menus are laid out on either side of the table, curly gold print on white laminated paper. It looks...nice.

“I apologize for the wait, we're very full right now as you can see.” The host says, looking sincere.

“That's okay! We understand.” John smiles as he takes his seat, picking up his menu.

“Thank you. Alert one of the waitstaff when you'd like to place your order.” The host bows, retreating back to the long line waiting for him.

 

“This place must be good if it's so packed.” John comments, beginning to flick through the menu.

“Eh. I haven't been here before.” Dave shrugs, leaning back in his chair as he idly flicks through his own menu. “I looked up Yelp reviews online and they all said it was the best place in town. Most expensive too, but hey, I can afford it tonight.”

“Are you sure? Everything's really expensive.” John frowns, squinting at some very overpriced breadsticks.

“It's fine John, I've got that movie deal remember? I can afford it.” Dave winces a little as he spots the same breadsticks John is looking at. $15 dollars for 3? What is this, some place down in New York City who wanted the American Dream but now have to face the harsh reality of making money? “Yeah probably.”

“The filet mignon sounds nice.” John hums. “But oh, so does the lamb ribs with mint sauce.”

“I'm going lobster bisque, because I'm fancy like that.” Dave sets down his menu on the table.

“You are not fancy. And you don't even like lobster anyway.” John frowns, peering at Dave from the top of his menu. “Or soup.”

“It's ironic.”

“Dave, I appreciate your dedication to the cause of irony, but you shouldn't waste your money on something you won't even eat. Last time you ate lobster you threw up all over the bathroom and yourself and I had to clean it up. I'm suggesting that you look for something else.”

“Alright fiiiine.” Like a petulant toddler, Dave huffs, reopening the menu. His eyes dart across its contents before he stops, seemingly having chosen. “Yeah okay, I'll go a vegetable ratatouille then.”

“Great! I think I'll go for the filet mignon after all.” John sets down his menu.

“Sweet, I'll call the waiter over. Do you want a drink?” Dave asks.

“Hmmm, just a…yeah a Pepsi is fine. I'm glad they have the kids menu, even if this isn't really the sort of restaurant you'd take your kids to.” John answers, sighing a little. The thought of kids is making him feel a little weird. It's been happening a lot lately and it's a bit embarrassing.

“Oh shit I should've ordered off the kids menu.” Dave chuckles to himself.

“No.”

“Alright fine. You're no fun.” Dave huffs, waving the waiter over to take their order.

The waiter is a rather young man with dull ginger hair. He seems just as stressed, if not more, than the host was.

“Hi! What can I help you with today?”

“We’d like to order now.” Dave says. “I'll go the vegetable ratatouille and a coca cola.”

“I'll take a filet mignon and a pepsi please.” John smiles at the waiter.

The waiter repeats their order and, confirming it, scribbles it down on a notebook. “Your order may take a little while, so please bare with us. I hope you enjoy your meal.” The waiter does a half-bow and hurries away.

 

“No alcohol?” John asks once the waiter has vanished inside the kitchen, looking at Dave.

“Nah, all it had was wine, and that stuff sucks. It's basically alcoholic grape juice and it's disgusting, especially the fancy stuff. Who decided to make wine in the first place? Like ‘oh hey, grapes are nice, let's make it into an alcoholic fucking juice.’ I don't know how wine is made. But however they make it, it tastes bad as shit. Like probably literal grape piss.” Dave rambles on. “Also because the kids menu is the shit.”

John snorts, quirking up an eyebrow at Dave. “Geez, you sure find a way to make things sound so appealing.”

“I know. It's a special skill of mine.” Dave smirks. “I'm great at it.”

John wonders if now, in this peaceful moment waiting for their food in the fanciest restaurant in town is the best time to talk to Dave about what he's been thinking about lately. Well, they are in a relationship and should always be open and honest with each other. And well, what John wants is definitely going to change their relationship forever. “Hey Dave? So lately I've been thinking…”

“Wow, that's rare for you Egbert.” Dave fires back, immature smirk on his face. John suddenly wonders if he was right to bring this up. Maybe Dave isn't ready. Nevertheless, he presses forward, against his better judgement.

“Hey, hear me out okay? This is important.” John gives Dave a  _ look _ . “I recently talked to Dad, and I've kind of been thinking about this for a while, y’know? But since your movie career is taking off and you're famous enough to be recognised on the street in certain places, and I've got half a year left on my prac work before I'm an actual doctor so we've got a stable income now...maybe we could...I dunno...have kids?”

Dave freezes. “What. How?”

“Well you see when a sperm fertilizes an egg, an embryo is formed. A child is formed in the stomach of its parent and is birthed into the world. The parents then raise the child and watch them grow up and find their way about the world.“ John cracks a smile, trying to find humour in this situation.

“I know how babies are made John.” Dave deadpans. “But I mean like, would we adopt or what?”

“Well I mean...I could have them? I want the child to be both of ours.” Suddenly John feels awkward and he shrinks in on himself. God, is that couple over there staring at him? He can't tell.

Dave blinks slowly, still shocked at the revelation. “How do we know we're ready though? Like, I'm gonna straight up say this, but I've got issues--serious issues that I don't want to pass on, you know?”

“I know I'm ready. I really want kids, but if you don't that's...that's fine. I understand, sorry.” John smiles sadly. 

“No no no no no!” Dave leans forward, grabbing John's hands. “I'm sorry! No, don't be sad! I mean kids and all sound nice, but I'd be a shitty fucking parent.”

“No you wouldn't.” John tries to reassure him.

“Uh, yeah I would.” Dave's mouth quirks up, then down. His expression grows darker. “John, you know about my dad. I don't want to be anything like him. I'm worried having kids will make me like him.”

“You won't...he was an asshole who never deserved children. You're not him.” John shakes his head, letting out a huff of laughter. “I'm sorry. I know you might not want to have children, but please consider it.”

“I will.” Dave promises, patting John's hand.”I'll try.”

 

“Uh sirs? Your drinks were the pepsi and the coca cola right?” The waiter interrupts, holding a tray with two drinks.

“Oh yes! That's us!” John smiles up at the waiter. 

The waiter places down the drinks on the table with the practised elegance displayed by all waitstaff. “Your dinner will be out in just a minute, our kitchen is running ahead of schedule at the moment.”

“Oh that's great! Thank you!” John beams.

“Enjoy your drinks.” The waiter bows, before scurrying away back into the kitchen.

Their meals arrive shortly after, steaming hot and smelling delicious. The restaurant does live up to the hype.

Their conversation from before is seemingly forgotten, although definitely not entirely. Dinner conversation tapers into something lighter and less life-changing, silly jokes and dumb sweet nothings.

But Dave can't help but think about John's proposition. He's never been one to particularly like children, but now it sounds...nice. Raising children with the man he loves most doesn't seem bad at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I hope you enjoy! We're finally getting into the self-indulgent real reason this fic was made--my wonderful fan kids, Elizabeth and James. I've written one other thing with them if anyone wants to check them out?


	45. 29 Years Old. Nighttime Discussions.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave comes to a shocking realisation at 2:30 in the morning, and decides to sort of act on it.

Soft breathing and the continuous ticking of a clock punctuate the silence of the dark room in a smooth, regular pattern. The room is dark, as it should be, with only a sliver of light peering in from behind the curtains.

But despite all this, Dave finds he still can't go to sleep. Sometimes he has trouble getting to sleep. Usually the feeling of another person sends him right to sleep, but not tonight apparently. John's having no such problems, the lucky bastard.

Dave shifts, pulling the covers higher up his torso and wriggling down more. His left wing is covering John, while his other wing stretches out to the right, carefully rolling onto his stomach into a more comfortable position. He rests his head in his hands on the pillow, cupping his head to look at John.

His boyfriend looks utterly at peace in his sleeping form. What is he dreaming about? Probably something about saving people's lives as a doctor or being an action hero, or, judging by his expression, something a lot softer. Maybe he's dreaming about cooking something experimental, or playing a prank on someone. 

John lets out a little sleepy huff, mumbling out a stream of words. Dave doesn't catch much, but he distinctly hears a ‘have a nice day at school sweetheart.’

Or maybe he's dreaming about kids.

Despite John not having mentioned kids since they had the discussion in the restaurant a few months back, it's kept Dave up at night. Would he be a good parent? If he had a kid with John, what would they be like? All these questions are keeping him up at night. Just imagining the sound of tiny feet pitter-pattering down the hall, or of tiny hands tugging at his jeans to grab his attention, or of a little body that's come from a combination of him and John makes him feel warm inside.

Dave thinks he does want kids. Maybe he won't exactly be the best parent but...he'll do his best.

“John…” Dave whispers, reaching his gnarled white crow hand forward to cup a chubby, tanned cheek in his hand.

“Uh...what?” John shoots up, hair sticking up everywhere and some drool around his mouth.

“I want kids too John.”

John squints up at Dave, blue eyes cloudy and confused. “What?”

“Remember on our date in the Nightingale Restaurant? And you said you wanted kids? Well I've thought about it ever since and I...kind of want them too.” Dave must seem a little crazy to the half asleep John. He feels a little crazy.

“Dave what? It's--” John squints at the digital clock on his bedside table. “2:30 in the morning. Why are we having this conversation now?”

“It just came into my head now. I want to have kids with you. We're alright financially right now, and you've got me thinking all about what it would be like.” Dave smirks. “Besides you were talking about it in your sleep.”

“I was? That's embarrassing.” John rubs the sleep out of his eyes.

“Do you um, still want kids?” Dave asks, suddenly realising John might have changed his mind in the year that's been. He is after all, Doctor Egbert now, with a career that might be damaged by children. John's wanted a doctorate for a long time. Longer than he has kids.

“Of course! Why wouldn't I?” John looks confused.

“I dunno, I just thought...uh.” Dave pauses. “Well now that it's settled we both want kids, how are we gonna have them? I mean are we gonna adopt or use a surrogate or what?”

“I could have them.” John looks at Dave, thoroughly embarrassed. “I mean I have the uh...equipment for it. And I've never been had any real gender dysphoria, I should be fine. I've never actually taken testosterone either, so the pregnancy itself should be fine.”

“I...oh. But...what about your job?”

“It will but...at the hospital they're very progressive. I can talk about it with my boss, I think she'll understand.” John purses his lips together. “Besides, they like me there. I don't mean to brag, but my boss has told me I do my job better than the other newbies they brought in, and even a few of the senior staff members. I don't think I'll lose the job or my career for getting pregnant.”

“I don't blame your boss for thinking that. But how did you even get into that conversation?” Dave asks, frowning a little.

“We like to gossip in the break room.” John replies, as if that explains everything. “But I'll try and work as much as I can to make up for it.”

Dave loops an arm around John and pulls him closer. He lowers his voice, whispering into John's ear. “Why don't we go for them now?”

“Dude.” John gives Dave a  _ look _ . “I literally just said I need to organize it with my boss first. After that's sorted, then we'll try.”

“Oh, right.” Dave blushes, embarrassed. “Sorry.”

John just sighs and shuffles closer to Dave, snuggling down in his arms and shoving his head in Dave's chest-fluff. It's not as fluffy as it was when he was younger but it's still soft and nice to lie on. “You're so soft…”

“Okay, I guess I'm just a pillow now.” Dave deadpans. Regardless he shifts his position so John can lie more comfortably.

“Yeah.” Comes the simple, sleepy reply.

“Are you falling asleep?” Dave asks, casually petting John's hair.

“Mmmm...it's 2:30 in the morning...of course I am.” John snuggles closer into Dave's chest, burying it in completely. “You need sleep too. We'll discuss it more in the morning.”

“Yeah, okay. Goodnight, sleep tight.” Dave says. But John doesn't reply, having already fallen asleep.

Dave closes his eyes and tries to follow John's lead. Sleep comes easier now that weight is off his chest and soon he slips into dreamland.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed!!! So my fankids are coming in next chapter I love them so much.
> 
> But just a warning for the next chapter: it will involve trans male pregnancy and I'm doing my best to portray it as accurately as possible  
> And also, it may take a little while to come out as its longer than usual + my phones on the fritz and i will need it repaired


	46. 30 Years Old. Pregnancy Blues.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John's journey to having kids, 'the old fashioned way'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I've tried to do this one as accurate as possible and make it as accurate to the trans experience tm of getting pregnant? But keep in mind this is coming from a 17 year old who has never been pregnant (and hopefully never will be), has never really seen a pregnancy in action (aka no close family members/friends have gotten pregnant) and I'm not trans I don't think so I'm trying my best

“Are you done in there John?” Dave calls towards his boyfriend through the bathroom door.

“Dave! Let me do this in peace! It's stressful enough without you yelling at me through the bathroom door.” Comes the frantic reply.

“You've been in there for like, 10 minutes already. Surely taking a pregnancy test doesn't take that long.” Dave calls back, pressing his back harder against the wall. He's sitting opposite the bathroom wall, waiting impatiently for the results of John's pregnancy test.

“Dave! You're not the one taking it! And you're stressing me out!” John replies, voice higher than usual.

“You've already taken two, you'll be fine with a third.” Dave shrugs, even though John can't see the movement. “What's the big deal? You've also drunk like what, two litres of water and three cups of orange juice? You should be pretty busting.”

“I don't know I…” John trails off. “I'm worried I might be infertile. The last two tests turned up negative, even though we were at it all night. Getting pregnant is harder than I thought...”

Dave lets out a snort of amusement, covering it up with a cough. “Wouldn't it be me then?”

“It could be either of us, I don't know!” John's voice rises a few octaves in a voice crack and Dave has to resist the urge to laugh.

“Hey, it's okay. It doesn't matter if you can't get pregnant. We have plan b and plan c after all. We'll have kids one way or another.” Dave does his best to reassure John.

John lets out a sigh of relief, accompanied by the soft tinkle of pee. Both of then pointedly ignore the sound. “Thanks Dave.”

There's the sound of awkward shuffling behind the bathroom door. Dave clutches his hands to his chest in nerves and anxiety. What will the test read?

“Alright, moment of truth, here we come…” John mumbles to himself. Then, a loud gasp of excitement.

The bathroom door swings open and John rushes out, holding up the pregnancy test for Dave to see. It displays a pink positive sign.

“Dave!!!”

“John!” Dave replies, sharing John's excitement.

“I mean these things aren't a 100% guarantee and we'll definitely have to go to the doctors, but...but…” John trails off, grinning like a madman.

“I know.” Dave shares John's crazy grin, reaching up a hand to pull the man down to sit beside him. “I know…”

 

☆☆☆

 

The doctor's room in the maternity ward of St Hope's Community Hospital is well lit, light from the lamp lighting up the room a bright white. This is the same hospital John works in, although he more works under a senior supervisor in the icu.

John’s doctor is a short, dark skinned man who is frowning a little at his computer screen. His lapel reads ‘Doctor Anish Kapoor’. And no, he's not that artist guy with the whole blackest black scenario, Dave has already embarrassed John by asking.

John's boss, the head of the hospital, was all for the pregnancy. It's great they can go ahead and everything is all sorted out now. As well as the all clear for maternity leave, she also gave recommendations for one of the best maternity specialists in the hospital. She really didn't have to do that, it may even be illegal, but she still did.

John's having an ultrasound, which is really weird. The gel is slimy and cold against his stomach and the seat is hard and the cushions are doing nothing to support his back.

“So what's the diagnosis doc?” Dave, who is standing right beside John, asks.

“Well, you're definitely pregnant.” The doctor sighs, swiveling around in his chair. “And it's going very well so far, everything appears to be normal. Except…”

“Except what!?” Dave interrupts before the doctor can finish, snapping to attention. His body grows very tense as he tightens his grip on John's hand. John tenses up a little too, he hopes it's nothing bad.

“Well, you're pregnant with twins. See here, on the ultrasound? There are two embryos and not one.” He gestures at the screen.

Dave leans forward to look at it, squinting at the screen. He then smiles, soft and adoring, at the two vague shapes on the monitor. They're only black gaps on the screen at the moment, week old as they are, but if Dave squints hard enough he can see the whitish-grey dots they make up.

“Oh.” John lets out a big sigh of relief, smiling widely at the monitor. “Oh thank goodness.”

“That's weird, because we're both twins.” Dave frowns a little. “Is that like, a genetic thing or something?”

“It could be, although to be completely honest, scientists have no idea.” Doctor Kapoor answers, picking up a bundle of brochures on his desk. He hands them over to John, who hands it to Dave to read. “Now John, as you know I will be your Doctor throughout your pregnancy. I'm now going to start by giving you a diet plan and discuss with you the dos and don'ts of pregnancy. I'm aware you already know them as a doctor but as a safety precaution I'm going to give this to you anyway, as your husband may not be aware of it.”

“That's fine, thank you. But also um, Dave and I aren't married yet, sorry.” John smiles politely.

“Yet?” Dave smirks, leaning over John. “Are you proposing Egbert?”

John goes tomato-red at his mistake. “Ah, well no, I mean I want to but we don't exactly have have enough money for a big fancy ceremony like you deserve, and with two kids and not one like we were expecting on the way that's going to be even more expensive...I mean I know we should tie the knot eventually we've been together long enough I...I…”

During John's speech, Dave's face has slowly grown to match the red shade John is sporting. “Yeah…”

Doctor Kapoor just raises an eyebrow. “Well on those brochures is everything you can and can't eat during the pregnancy, as well as dietary recommendations.”

“Oh, thank you.” John leans upwards to take a peek at the brochures.

“It may be a little early in the pregnancy to discuss this, but since you are having a multiple birth it would be best if you have a cesarean .” Doctor Kapoor places his hands on his lap.

“Multiple birth? Jesus, that sounds cultish.” Dave laughs. 

That gets a snort-laugh out of Doctor Kapoor, mask of professionalism broken just for a second. “Yes, that is the correct medical jargon. It does sound strange I know.”

“I'd rather a cesarean anyway.” John gives a grim wince. “I don't want to do it the other way.”

“In most cases of multiple births, it is best to do a cesarean as the strain of pushing out multiple children may hurt the parent. It also may affect your mental health John, as you are transgender and will most likely experience heavy bouts of gender dysphoria that may intensify during and after the pregnancy.” Doctor Kapoor explains. “It isn't exactly very common for men to give birth but it is growing more common in this day and age. Regardless, I am assigning you a therapist.”

“Oh, um, thanks but I don't think I'll need one--” John starts, but Doctor Kapoor holds up a finger to silence him.

“That wasn't an option.” He rifles through the papers on his desk, pulling out a sheet of paper. “These are her contact details.”

“Thanks.” Dave takes it before John can protest.

“Alright, that should be all today. You can clean off the gel now.” Doctor Kapoor stands up, handing John a paper towel. John immediately sets to wiping off his stomach, sitting up himself.

“Can we um, get a copy of the ultrasound photo at all?” Dave asks.

“What? Dave they're literally blobs there's nothing there yet to fawn over.” John frowns.

“Yeah but I want them to like, track progress and stuff.” Dave looks sheepish, embarrassed. “And you know, make it a big thing during their 21st, like your dad did with you and Jane.”

“Don't worry, it's more common than you think.” Doctor Kapoor smiles briefly. “I'll go and get them printed off if you'd like to wait outside?”

“Yeah sure.” Dave shrugs as John leans his head on him for support.

Doctor Kapoor opens the door, holding it open for John and Dave to step outside.

“Thank you. For this.” John says.

“It's my job.” Doctor Kapoor says, shrugging. “Now if you'd just hold on a moment, I'll pull out the ultrasound photos.”

As soon as Doctor Kapoor has disappeared into a room a little further down the corridor, Dave turns to John, eyes wide. 

“Twins!”

“I know!” John chuckles, rubbing his stomach. “It's so exciting isn't it?”

Dave replies by peppering John's face in numerous kisses, both men grinning wildly.

 

☆☆☆

 

“So you two, what is this wondrous surprise you've invited us all to hear?” Rose looks up from her cup of tea at the smiling figure of John.

“You're going to have to wait Rosie dearest, just like everybody else.” Dave slings an arm around John's shoulders, smirking down at her. She sneers back, rolling her eyes.

“I must admit, I am very curious about this as well.” Kanaya states, nursing her own cup of tea in her lap. “You are being very elusive about the subject.”

“Just wait until Dad and Jane get here, okay? They shouldn't be too long.” John pleads, raising his arms in surrender.

“And what are we supposed to do while waiting?” Dirk says, who is currently perched on their apartment window, which John really wishes he wouldn't do. He could fall out, or break the window.

“Drink your tea and eat the cupcake Dirk.” Dave says, pointing at Dirk's mug, precariously balanced on the windowsill.

“Yeah! I made cupcakes! I've been feeling very experimental with them lately--these ones are cheese and bacon flavoured!” John smiles, gesturing at the plate filled with bright yellow cupcakes.

Jade, who is nursing a half-eaten one in her hands, takes another bite. “Yeah, it tastes great John!”

“Yeah, they're okay.” Dave agrees, but shoots Jade a  _ look _ that John doesn't notice.

“I thought cupcakes were supposed to be sweet, not savoury.” Rose eyes one, making a move to pick it up.

“I'm experimenting with all types of flavours.” John shrugs. “Including savoury.”

 

A knocking at the door interrupts the conversation. John practically skips over to answer it, dragging Dave along with him.

Jane and Dad are standing in the doorway, looking apologetic. Jane is holding a box of some sort, although it's probably baked goods of some sorts as it bears her cafés logo.

“I'm so sorry we're late. You know what the traffic is like.” Dad says, holding his arms out for a hug. “I apologize for holding you all up, I hope you weren't waiting too long.”

“It's okay Dad!” John wraps his arms around Dad's middle, squeezing him tightly. They part, and both Jane and Dad step inside. John closes the door behind them. “I made cupcakes, and there's heaps left.”

“I brought cupcakes from the café.” Jane sheepishly holds out a box of cupcakes with rainbow icing swirls, dusted with glitter.

“Oh sweet, they look great.” Dirk hops down from his perch on the windowsill and plucks a cupcake right from the box.

“They're vanilla flavoured--pretty plain but they do have fancy decorations and they icing makes them quite a big seller.” Jane smiles offering one to everyone in the room. Everyone takes one, and John's cupcakes are sort of left on the table. John gets it, they were way too salty and not too nice. Well, he should probably cross ‘cheese and bacon’ flavor off his experiment list. Maybe he should try the combination on something else. But those are thoughts for another time.

“John, what flavour are your cupcakes?” Dad asks, having dared to eat one. Well, despite its strange taste he's still proud of his son. “They're very salty.”

“They're cheese and bacon. It's a little experiment.” John replies, looking sheepish.

“They're nice, but I feel like dipping it in ketchup which isn't necessarily the best sign.” Dad lets John down easy. John just laughs.

“Anyway, now that everyone is here, what is your announcement?” Rose interrupts, 

“Oh! Yes!” John perks up, sharing an excited, yet nervous, look with Dave. “Well...I'm pregnant.”

Everyone's reactions are instantaneous.

Jade lets out a squeal of excitement. Rose hands a ten dollar note to a very smug Kanaya. Dirk does a spit take of his tea, spraying crumbs and tea everywhere. Jane claps her hands together in excitement. A range of emotions pass through Dad's face in an unreadable whirl.

“Um...Dad?” John asks, peering at his father with worried eyes. Dave places a hand on his shoulder.

Dad whirls on Dave, eyes furious. “I told you if you got my son pregnant I would get very angry!”

Dave lets out a literal squeak of fear. “When we were 17!”

“I'm just kidding.” Dad chuckles, waving him off. “You should've seen your face.”

“Haha...yeah…” Dave's eyes are still blown wide with panic.

“I'm so proud of you John.” Dad smiles, turning to his son. “How far along are you and when should I expect my grandchild?”

“Well, I'm only a month pregnant, and they're due early February. And it's not just a grandchild, it's two. We're expecting twins.” John explains, rubbing his stomach.

“I must admit, I'm a little confused.” Jane gives her brother a brief smile. “But I'm pretty excited for you. Congratulations.”

“Are we going to be the aunties too!?” Jade bursts in, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“Of course!” John beams. “It won't be biological, but you guys will definitely be aunties.”

“Oh, I can't wait to meet them!” Jade grins, resting her chin on her hands.

“Would you like me to make you some clothes during the pregnancy?” Kanaya asks. “It would be nice to start designing baby clothes.”

“I'll knit them little baby onesies and soft toys.” Rose agrees with her girlfriend. “With Kanaya’s clothing and my knitting, your children will be the most fashionable children in Seattle.”

“I hope you name at least one of them after me.” Dirk jokes. “Or at least something that honours their favourite uncle.”

“No way in hell dude.” Dave snorts. “Besides, you'll be their only uncle. They'll have like five aunties and one uncle. So you'll be favourite by default, they have to fight for their right to be favourite aunty. At least you don't have to do that.”

“Two uncles, actually. I do have a boyfriend you know. You count Roxy but not my boyfriend, this is sexism.”

“Friends with benefits don't count.” Dave smirks at his brothers scandalized expression.

“Then why are you counting Roxy?” Dirk puts a hand on his hip. Jane turns red, side-eyeing Dad.

“I really don't need to hear this.” Dad says, rather loudly, which brings an end to that.

“Have you actually named them yet?” Jade asks, staring at John's stomach.

“No, not yet. They're only a month along Jade! We're going to think it through. We have eight months to do it and all.” John shakes his head, bringing his hands up to his chin in a thinking pose. “But I was, well, we both were thinking, that if there's a boy we'll name him James, after you Dad.” 

“Oh…” Dad clasps his hands over his mouth, eyes shining with tears.

John holds out his arms and smiles at Dad with teary eyes. Dad accepts the hug, tearfully embracing his son.

“What if they're both girls?” Someone asks, although John can't exactly make out who.

“We'll name the Jamesina and Jamesette.” Dave answers for John.

“No.” John laughs, emerging from the hug. “We're not.”

“We'll figure something out.” Dave shrugs, once again draping his arms around John's shoulders. John just beams, grateful for the support and the love from his friends and family.

 

☆☆☆

 

Several chopping boards are strewn about on the kitchen bench, each heaped with a messy pile of various fruits. Dave stands in front of a chopping board, slicing through a mango. His hands are covered in the juices of various fruits, and the knife handle is sticky with juice.

A bowl lies in the centre of the table, empty for now but it will contain a fruit salad in a little while. When you can't cook, a fruit salad is the best thing to surprise your boyfriend coming home from a long day at work. He's the best boyfriend, it's him.

The radio is switched on, playing the top ten countdown of an irrelevant music chart. The current song is a banger, but Dave partially tunes it out in favour of keeping an ear out for John.

He should be home soon. He finishes work at 6, and he's usually home by 6:30. It's around 6:20 now, so Dave has approximately 10 minutes to finish his fruit salad surprise.

Picking up the pace a little bit, Dave finishes chopping up the mangoes and scrapes them into the bowl. He then begins to scrape the other fruits into the bowl, until the bowl is filled with fruit.

Grabbing a spoon, Dave stirs the salad. He's added mangoes, apples, oranges, banana, pineapple, strawberries and raspberries. John's been craving strawberries lately, and fruit is apparently great for the growing babies. Hopefully John likes the surprise.

 

The door unlocking startles Dave. John's a bit early today it seems.

Dave saunters out into the living room, greeting his exhausted looking boyfriend with a smile. “Hey babe, did you have a good day?” Dave asks, cupping John's cheeks in his hands and pressing a kiss to John's forehead. He then leans down, and places two kisses on John's somewhat enlarged stomach. He greets his unborn children with the usual greeting. “I love you two so much, I hope to see you soon.”

“I had a terrible day.” John states, very simply. He still smiles at Dave's greeting, despite his horrid day and the fact that Dave has done this greeting thing since John became pregnant.

“What? That's terrible! What happened?” Dave asks, standing up straight. “Wait, tell me in a minute. Get yourself comfortable on the couch, I made you a surprise treat and I'll bring it out to you.”

“Oh you spoil me.” John chuckles. Dave presses another kiss to John's forehead before disappearing back into the kitchen.

Luckily he managed to finish his fruit salad before John came home. Dave fishes a spoon out from the cutlery drawer and sticks it in the bowl. He picks it up, carefully carrying it out to John. The bowl is heavy, and Dave doesn't want to drop all his hard work.

John is seated on the couch, but instead of waiting patiently for Dave with an ever-present smile on his face, he's  _ crying _ .

Shit.

Dave immediately rushes to John's side, setting down the fruit bowl beside him in  order to lay an arm across John's shoulders. “John what's wrong? Come on, talk to me.”

“It's just...everything.” John replies, looking down at the ground.

“Was it the bad day at work?” Dave asks, picking up the fruit salad and placing it gently on John's lap. “I made you a treat, I know you've been craving strawberries a lot and lots of fruit is apparently great for the growing babies. Eat your worries away.”

John huffs out a smile, lifting the spoon to his mouth. He chews with a thoughtful, content expression yet tears still stream down his face. “Yeah, it does and this is delicious, thanks Dave. And yeah, I had a few bad patients today and I guess that put me in a really bad mood.”

“Do you want to talk about it? Would that help?”

“I...I guess?” John squints, thinking a little. “I mean I'm 5 months pregnant now, and people tend to have a lot to say about that. People always have an opinion, always touching my stomach and I hate it--”

“Do you...do you not want me to touch your stomach?” Dave interrupts, voice quiet.

“N-no!” John falters. “You're their father and I love it when you give me belly rubs and kiss my stomach and stuff, it's really sweet. And I don't mind when Dad, Jane, Rose, Kanaya or Jade do it because they're my friends and family. But it's when complete strangers come up to me in public and touch my stomach, or when my patients do it that I just...I...I just hate it.”

“That sucks dude, I didn't think of that. Next time someone does that I'll tell them to back off.” Dave leans forward and plucks a mango chunk out of John's bowl. John glowers but is seemingly alright with Dave taking the mango. Just not the strawberries.

“And it's the constant misgendering too. I thought I had it bad at school and before I came out to Dad, but I had no idea! It's always ma’am or miss, or lady.”

Dave winces sympathetically, not getting it but still there for his boyfriends pain.

“And all my hormones are an utter mess and I feel like a fucking slave to them. I want strawberries, I want you, I want to lie in bed all day and watch ghost hunting shows. I throw up in the toilet every single morning and everything hurts all the time. My tits? Yeah, they're absolute hell.” John continues, waving his arms around as he rambles. “I hate it so much.”

“That's fair.” Dave shrugs.

“Sometimes it gets so bad I just...I wish we had adopted, you know?” John pauses. “God that sounds horrible…”

“Hey, hey John it's okay.” Dave says, rubbing John's shoulder comfortably. “It's okay. I get it. You can let it all out to me, I'm here to listen.”

John just lets out a sob, burying his face in Dave's shoulder. And Dave just holds him, rocking him back and forth and whispering sweet nothings into John's ears. Dave has noticed John has good days and bad days, although he tries to hide the bad days. Today isn't one of the good days.

It's all Dave can do to hold him, and hope that the pain passes soon.

 

☆☆☆

 

“I've been thinking about my mother lately.” Dave breaks the silence both himself and John have found themselves in. Well it's not a complete silence, as the TV is playing Ghost Adventures. John's just started pregnancy leave and he's fully taking advantage of Dave working from home, and using him for cuddles while binge watching his favourite show.

“Yeah?” John looks up from the show, a strawberry from the bowl on his lap halfway to his mouth.

“And the twins. And...what to name them.” Dave continues.

“Oh, right.” John picks up the TV remote and turns down the volume, in order to give Dave his full attention.

“So we know that we're having a boy and a girl right? And the boy is going to be called James definitely, in honour of your Dad? Well I was wondering if we could name the girl Elizabeth, in honour of my mother.” Dave says, a little nervously.

“That's a lovely idea!” John claps his hands together. “I'm sure if she was watching us right now she'd be honoured.”

“I know I never met her, but I'd still like to honour her.” Dave looks down glumly. “Of what little I've seen or heard of her...she seemed nice.”

“Of course.” John smiles, placing his hands over Dave's hands. “It's such a nice idea.”

Dave smiles, placing a hand on John's stomach, still touching John's other two hands. John's stomach has gotten a lot larger over the last 7 months. John has grown self conscious of it, and Dave does his best to keep John's spirits up.

Underneath the hard surface of John's stomach, Dave knows his children lie. What are they doing in there? Are they having fun? Are they excited to be born? Do they know he loves them so much? John keeps telling him that all they're doing is sleeping and getting nutrients from his body and can't actually answer those questions but Dave doesn't care.

He feels a slight kick under his hand and beams. John just winces in pain. Dave lays a soft kiss to John's cheek, rubbing John's stomach gently.

“What if one of them is a shifter?” Dave asks, resting his head on John's shoulder.

“Genetically there is a 50% chance per child, so it's pretty much a guarantee one of them is.” John answers automatically, as if he was expecting that question.

“Oh.” Dave doesn't know what to feel about this. Although he knows that it's impossible, he can't help but fear one of them will be a mutant shifter and kill John when he gives birth.

“Dave. You realise genetic material comes from both parents right?” John sighs. This is 10th grade biology shit! Granted, Dave never took biology in school, so he can maybe excused for not knowing that.

“What?” Dave asks. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“A hell of a lot.” John sighs again. “My mother...she was a shifter.”

“Why didn't I know this?” Dave asks. He's known John since he was 6 and cone to think of it, John hasn't really mentioned his mother.

“You didn't exactly ask.” John shrugs. “And Dad doesn't like to talk about it. She died when we were four, of lung cancer. I don't remember much but I know it was slow and painful, and it pains Dad to talk about her.”

“Oh...I'm sorry.”

“Don't be, it happened years ago. I don't remember much about her, but sometimes Dad talks about her. He says she was always so stern, but laughed and laughed at the dumbest of his jokes.” John lets out a dry laugh. “But she was a shifter. And she passed that down into Jane and I, although as it is a recessive gene Jane and I aren't shifters. But our kids would be if we had them with a shifter.”

“What.”

John sighs. “Look, it's very simple really. Here, let me draw it up for you--”

“That's not necessary thanks John.” Dave stops him from getting up. “So one of our children is definitely going to be a shifter? That's just...great…”

“What's wrong with that?” John frowns. If he has to go all motivational speech on Dave's ass he will.

“It's just well...it's my responsibility as their dad to teach them how to shift. And well, I don't exactly have the best guide to go on.” Dave scoffs, toe nudging the carpet as he glares down at it.

“Awww, Dave you'll do fine!” Ah. It seems John is going to have to motivational speech this shit after all. “Just look at what your father did, and then do the complete opposite. Be patient, be kind. Love them. Make sure they know it. When we first met you were so skittish, you hated yourself so much. I still see evidence of that today. I don't want either of my children to ever feel that way. You'll do brilliant and you won't be alone, I'll be right by you.”

“You're right.” Dave nods. “I'll teach them. I may not exactly be the best teacher but I'll try.”

“That's the spirit.” John beams, glad for Dave's sudden confidence.

“Thank you.” Dave leans upwards and kisses John gently on the side of his mouth. John grumbles slightly in response, shuffling closer to Dave so their bodies are pressed together.

“Now that's settled, can we get back to Ghost Adventures and snuggling?” John asks, tone snappy and impatient.

“Yeah yeah.” Dave snorts, pretending not to notice the way John is practically lying on top of him and still straining for more cuddle space. Dave turns the volume back up and they continue binging in silence.

 

☆☆☆

 

John and Dave's bedroom is usually fairly messy. It's gotten a lot cleaner over the past month however, as a bored-out-of-his-mind John with nothing to do while on pregnancy leave hyper cleaned the place.

Dave feels bad for his boyfriend, cooped up in the house as he is. He tries to work from home as often as he can but he can't exactly do that with his sort-of art studio being transformed into a nursery.

John lies beside Dave on the bed, contentedly sleeping as Dave sketches in his notebook.

It's nice.

He's sketching out storyboards for his next movie. It's going to be wild. It's the next installment of the Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff movie, and it's going to involve dinosaurs and sweet guitar riffs and sunglass-wearing tigers. It's going to be the biggest thing to hit cinema that Dave's pulled out of his ass since the first installment of the series.

John shudders beside him. Dave pulls the blanket over him, hoping to block out the wintery chill from his boyfriends shivering form.

John shudders again and curls up together in a ball, pressing his back against his side. He lets out a little noise, muffled and quiet.

“Dave?” John's voice is soft and quiet. Dave gives him a non-committal hum in response. “My water just broke.”

“That's a fancy way of saying you pissed yourself.” Dave replies, not really paying attention to John's words.

“Wha-no Dave you fucking idiot, it means I'm going into labour.” John snaps. It is then that Dave looks down and notices how strained his boyfriend's face is, and how bad he's trembling.

“Oh...oh shit!” Fuck Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff, his kids are coming!

 

Dave doesn't remember much about the actual birth. He knows the date, of course he does. He only really remembers the feelings of it.

There was a lot of stress.

Stress getting John out of bed, out the door, into the car and to the hospital.

Stress in the operation room.

Stress as his boyfriend was put under anesthesia and cut open.

Stress as the doctors and nurses got angry at him for getting in their way.

Stress as he squeezed John's hand, trying to give him some comfort despite John being unconscious.

But there was also relief.

Relief when it all went smoothly.

Relief when both of his children were brought into the world, healthy as any baby.

And then, after it all, there was the absolute joy of holding his children for the first time.

 

The girl, Elizabeth, came first, screaming her lungs out. Her tiny fists and tiny face were screwed up as she wailed. Dave's heart soared as he watched the doctors lift her into the air.

The boy, James, came second, so deadly silent that all of Dave's fears of death and miscarriage returned at once. But it was a false alarm, as he seemed just as happy and healthy as his sister, just a lot quieter.

 

It's later, after the birth, that Dave truly remembers. With John still unconscious, Dave stands alone, staring in the window at the nursery. As he looks at the sleeping faces of his newborn son and daughter he makes a promise to himself. A promise he remembers and holds true to even as his children grow bigger and older.

A promise that he will protect them both, no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dave, staring at his newborn children through the nursery window: I've only had Elizabeth and James for less than a day and if anything happened to them I would kill everyone in this room and then myself.


	47. 30 Years Old. Hello Babies..

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John meets Elizabeth and James for the first time.

John's hospital room is far too quiet.

He's been asleep for three days now, exhausted by the birth. He has woken up once or twice (after the anesthesic wore off), but he was in such terrible pain it hurt Dave to see.

The nurses have assured Dave that everything is fine, that this happens to pretty much everyone who has a cesarean, but Dave still worries.

Elizabeth and James are fine. More than fine.

Both babies are bright and healthy and happy. 

Elizabeth seems to be very active, moving her head and limbs around quite a lot (with support from Dave of course). She cries and screams a lot, which hurts Dave's heart as well as his ears.

James seems to love being held, and he stares up at Dave with curious blue eyes. He was the one who inherited the shifter gene, his hair a light grey.

Dave has visited them over the past three days as much as he can. He spends all of his visiting hours either holding John's hand or watching over his children.

Dave can't wait for John to properly wake up and meet them both.

 

Dave is waiting on a chair by John's bedside, clutching John's hand. He's already said hello to his children today, but they were both sound asleep and he couldn't bear to wake them.

John stirs on the bed beside him, sleepily opening his eyes. Dave immediately focuses on him, squeezing his hand.

“You're awake!”

“Oh...yeah I guess. How long was I out? And...and where are the children?” John starts to get up, still obviously in pain. Dave gently pushes him back down.

“You've been asleep for around three days. I'll call the nurse to let them know you're awake.” Dave presses the buzzer on the wall besides John's bed. “The children are both fine. They're absolutely beautiful and wonderful, all thanks to you.”

“That's good.” John smiles, snuggling back down into bed. “I'm glad...what are they like?”

“Well the girl, Elizabeth, came out first. She's very wiggly and very...vocal. James came out second, and he...he was the one who inherited the shifter gene.” Dave explains. John's exhausted face lights up as Dave explains their children.

“Oh...that's great.” John, although overjoyed, seems extremely exhausted.

Dave lifts up John's hand and presses a kiss to his knuckles. “You did well.”

“Of course I did.” John says proudly.

 

At that moment a nurse bustles into the room, his movements urgent.

“Oh. You're awake.”

“Well that's why I called you.” Dave retaliates, folding his arms against his chest.

“How do you feel?” The nurse asks, pointedly ignoring Dave.

“Pretty exhausted, very much in pain.” John manages to smile back politely at the nurse. “Can I see my children?”

The nurse looks like they were expecting this. “I just need to do a few checks on you and you should be fine to see them.”

The nurse bustles around John, busily checking the monitors and writing stuff down on a clipboard. Dave squints his eyes as if he's trying to see deep into the nurses face and it's not until John catches sight of his nametag that he recognises the nurse.

“Oh shit, Karkat is that you?” John gasps. “We lived in the same sharehouse for uni! Do you remember us?”

Karkat squints his eyes at both of their faces before he recognises them. “John Egbert and Dave Strider? Yeah I remember you guys, you lived on the upper floor and would always hog the kitchen. At least you did the washing up, unlike  _ some _ people, but still, I maybe wanted to cook some shit too? Everytime I went into the kitchen there you were, talking or studying or cooking, like that was the only place you could hang out, despite having a perfectly good room upstairs!”

“Yikes, you've got baggage.” Dave snorts.

“Yeah, fuck you.” Karkat rolls his eyes, ticking stuff off on his clipboard.

“Hey aren't you supposed to not swear at patients?” Dave narrows his eyes into a glare. “Customer service is a thing you know.”

“But you're not a patient.” Karkat doesn't even spare a glance in Dave's direction. “John is.”

“It's good to see you again, and we're working at the same hospital now, isn't that great?” John beams. “Once I get out of hospital we should all go out for lunch sometime and catch up!”

“That sounds…” Karkat’s eyes glance from Dave to John. He seems a little like he would rather not do that. “...nice.”

“That's great!” John claps his hands together, all excited.

The room is silent once more as Karkat runs through his checks. Everything seems to be in order, as Karkat seems to be ticking every box on his clipboard.

“Yeah, you should be good to see your children now. I'll go and fetch them for you.” Karkat confirms, finally. He then turns and leaves, busily hurrying out of the room, no doubt towards the nursery.

 

“Oh, I can't wait to meet them.” John sighs, smiling softly. “I've spent nine months waiting for them and now that I finally get to see them in a few moments, it seems like forever!”

“I know how you feel.” Dave shares John's exhausted smile, patting his boyfriends hand.

“But you've already met them!” John laughs, quite loudly.

“True.” Dave shrugs, before his tone grows deadly serious. “How are you though, in all seriousness?”

“I'm sore...exhausted...but I want to see my children.” John looks down at his body, although only seeing the shape of the sheets. He wrinkles his nose up in disgust.

“Hey, it'll be okay.” Dave presses another kiss to John's knuckles. “You won't be so sore soon.”

“Easy for you to say.” John rolls his eyes.

Karkat bustles back into the room, wheeling a double crib in front of him. John immediately leans towards it, hoping to catch a glance of his children ahead of time. Karkat leans into the crib and pulls out the closest baby--Elizabeth, wrapped snugly in a red blanket--and places her into John's arms.

She wakes, staring up at John with wide blue eyes.

“Oh, hello Elizabeth sweetheart, I'm your dad.” John smiles so widely and his eyes threaten to overspill with tears. They actually do when Karkat places James into his other arm. John looks at Dave, happy tears streaming down his face. “Dave, look…”

Dave snaps a photo on his phone, capturing the moment.

Both babies, once happily asleep in their crib, are now awake in John's arms. Surprisingly neither of them seem very bothered by this. James stares up at his dad curiously while Elizabeth makes a soft little cooing noise.

“Yes, hello! I love you! I love you both so much!” John coos back, voice raising a few pitches. As it raises, it also descends into nonsensical baby babble.

Dave watches them with a smile on his face. He leans forward and rests his head on John's shoulder, staring down at his babies. John gently boops Elizabeth's nose, and she screws up her nose and makes a face. John laughs gently and kisses her on the forehead.

By now James has fallen back asleep. A chubby, tanned cheek is squished against John's chest. John kisses him on the forehead too, which doesn't even cause him to stir.

Elizabeth has started to nod back off as well, cutely looking as if she's struggling against the temptation of sleep. It's not too long before she gives in, closing her eyes.

“A ww...they're so sleepy…” John smiles, but his own exhaustion is catching up to him. Tightening his grip on his children, John leans back and falls right asleep.

Dave looks at them all, his babies, his boyfriend, all asleep together. It's not a scene he would have imagined happening around five years ago, but he wouldn't have it any other way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always I hope you enjoy!   
> I've really been getting into tea lately, as lame as that sounds. I love T2 honestly??? New York Breakfast is honestly the best??? It tastes like pancakes I'm in love ♡♡♡


	48. 30 Years Old. Meeting the Grandchildren.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dad and Jane visit their new family members in the hospital and bring gifts.

The hospital room is a lot louder with both John awake and Elizabeth and James in it.

They're a week and a half old now, and allowed out of the nursery for longer periods with their parents. The babies sleep a lot, cry a lot and eat a lot. Luckily for them there's a break in that same old dull routine, as they're going to meet their Grandad and Aunty Jane for the first time. They should be arriving shortly, although they have a little bit of a tendency of getting caught in traffic, no matter how meticulously planned out their journey is.

James is currently being cradled in Dave's arms, happily fed and asleep while Elizabeth is in the process of being fed. John and Dave have learnt by now that it's easiest to feed James first so that he's fed and happy before they attempt to feed Elizabeth. It's a little mean, but it works.

James’ tiny fist is curled around Dave's pointer finger. He's staring up at Dave, gummy smile on his face.

“Are you excited to meet your Grandad and your Aunty Jane? They're very excited to meet you.” Dave coos, shaking his finger gently at his son. James’ face lights up and he wiggles slightly, letting out little huffs of air.

“I think Elizabeth's excited too, I can't tell.” John smiles, having finished feeding her. She seems satisfied, yet bored, eyes darting around the room. “But I'm not too sure if they know they're getting visitors. They're only a week and a half old and all.”

“You're probably right. But it's cute to pretend.” Dave laughs, booping James on the nose. He leans over to boop Elizabeth on the nose, but she starts wailing as soon as he touches her. 

“Oh great Dave look, you made her cry.” John lifts her out of Dave's reach, nursing her gently until she stops crying. She tends to like being wrapped up--be it in her parents arms or a blanket.

“Oh…” Dave falters, staring sadly at his daughter, who has now stopped crying. She looks as if she wasn't even crying just a few seconds ago. “I...I'm sorry.” 

He leans in closer to her, staring at her tiny face. Unblinkingly, she reaches up and touches his nose with a tiny finger. She giggles at his surprise, as if nothing was ever wrong with her, John joining in on the laughter.

“Okay, I see how it is.” Dave says, sniffing and focussing on James. “She's got your knack of making fun of me.”

“It's so cute.” John laughs. “She's a little joker, just like her dad.”

“You say that but wait until she's pulling them on you.”

 

“Hey guys.” Jane's voice interrupts, as the woman herself enters the room, carrying a large box and a small bag, followed closely by Dad. “Sorry if we were late or anything. You know how the traffic is.”

“That's fine Jane, we understand. Come on in.” John says, smiling widely at his visitors.

“Hello everyone.” Dad smiles in a greeting. “It's lovely to see you both and my grandchildren.

Dave pulls up a chair beside him, which Dad promptly sits on. Jane sits on John's bed, setting down the bag and the box.

“Is that James?” Dad asks Dave, pointing at the baby in his arms.

“Oh, yeah.” Dave says. “Would you like to hold him?”

“Yes please.” Dad replies, a proud smile on his face as his grandson is gently placed into his arms.

James curls his other hand around one of Dad's fingers, still grasping Dave's hand tightly. Dad smiles fondly, gently waving his hand so James’ arms wave around.

“I brought you some treats.” Jane explains, gesturing at the box and the bag. “The bag is from me, and the things in the box are from both of us.”

“Thanks.” John laughs. He goes to take her offered gifts yet finds his arms are full with his baby daughter. “Do you want to do a swap?”

“Yes please.” Jane smiles, mouth growing wider as John deposits Elizabeth into her arms. Elizabeth stops and stares at Jane, squinting hard at her face as if trying to determine who Jane is. Dad peers at her from his chair, still playing with James’ arm. “Oh, isn't she adorable.”

“I know.” John smiles softly at his daughter as he pulls Jane's presents closer to him. He goes for the bag first, pulling out a bottle of champagne. He recognises it as a really expensive brand. “Oh Jane, you shouldn't have.”

“You couldn't have any for 9 months, you need to have a treat. I'm a great sister.” Jane grins. “This stuff is good, you'll love it I promise. I also found a recipe for gushers soaked vodka online that isn't really my thing but you'd love it. I included it in there.”

“That sounds gross.” Dave wrinkles up his nose.

“It does, I don't understand how you like those sorts of things. Just some red wine is fine by me.” Dad agrees. He leans closer to James, tone growing higher as he talks to his grandson. “It is gross, isn't it? Yes it is! It is gross.”

“Technically I shouldn't have any alcohol until these ones are weaned off breast milk.” John winces, as if thinking that thought is incredibly hard. “But thanks Jane, I'll save it for later.”

“The box is baby stuff.” Jane explains as John opens it up. “You'll probably get a lot of clothes from Kanaya when they visit. Have they visited you guys yet?”

“Not yet, they're coming in two days time though.” John says, box half open in his hands. “They're very excited. We've had some chats on the phone with them.”

“Oh, that's nice.” Jane comments, shifting Elizabeth slightly. Elizabeth makes a noise of protest, and Jane quickly corrects her grasp.

John opens up the box. Inside is some brightly coloured baby toys as well as some bottles, some baby books and rabbit patterned muslin wrap. “Thanks guys, we need this stuff. Dave's gotten a few things at home, but they don't have anything here, and we won't be discharged for a few weeks yet.”

“Just some toys and stuff, nothing too big.” Dave pipes up. “The only big thing is the cot.”

“I'm glad you like it.” Jane says, playing idly with her niece's hand.

“I am very ready to spoil these two rotten.” Dad gushes. “I'm taking my role as grandad very seriously.”

John pulls a random toy out of the box (which happens to be a brightly coloured toy keychain) and hands it to Elizabeth, dangling it above her head. It makes a clacking noise, plastic keys hitting each other, and she reaches up her arms to touch it. John lowers it until Elizabeth is able to firmly grasp it in her hands. Little giggles burst out of her mouth as she waves it about.

“Does James want one?” Dave grabs a random toy out as well, this one a brightly coloured toy book. It's pages make a crinkly sound when pressed, soft to the touch. James looks at it, as if evaluating which hand he should let go of in order to grab the toy. Eventually he sacrifices holding Dad's hand in order to hold both the toy and Dave's hand.

“You two have two big responsibilities now.” Dad says, placing a hand on James’ head as he looks at John and Dave. “You'll be very sleep deprived looking after these two. Lord knows we were when you two were babies. And I should warn you beforehand, toddlers tend to try and get themselves killed when exploring, so I hope you've baby proofed the house properly.”

“Don't worry, I've baby proofed the house.” Dave says, waving off Dad's concerns. “I've also done my research on the appropriate shows and foods and toys and stuff so they should be safe.”

“We know they're a huge responsibility Dad, but we're adults now, we're ready for it.” John smiles. “We want this.”

“You're all grown up now, you've got kids of your own. I remember when you were their size and now you have children of your own.” Dad wipes at his eye a little bit. “And they're both so beautiful…”

“I know…” John agrees fond smile on his face as his eyes look around the room--at his sister, his father, his boyfriend and his son and daughter. He now understands why his dad was so proud of his children all the time.

Dave is immeasurably happy and excited and proud. His worries of not being a good father are at the back of his mind at he stares at his children.

Jane is happy for her brother. She'll be the best Aunty she can be, hopefully the favourite amongst all the apparent contenders.

Dad looks at Elizabeth determinedly waving around her toy in Jane's arms, and at James whose fallen asleep in his own arms. His grandchildren are absolutely beautiful and he can't wait to watch them grow up. He'll spoil them both rotten--it's his job as their only grandparent.

He never really thought either of his children would be ones to have children, but looking at them both, playing with toys and resting, he's glad they did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The twins birthday is the 5th of February if anyone is interested! That's their birthday bc that is the day I actually finished their designs last year.  
> James is based off of the johndave kid from the snapchat epilogue and Elizabeth is the reverse amalgamation (she wears red contacts). The whole reason why I added the shifter thing to this is bc I needed an excuse for James' grey hair to make biological sense :/  
> As always I hope you enjoyed :)


	49. 30 Years Old. Meeting the Niece and Nephew.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jade, Rose and Kanaya meet Elizabeth and James for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me before I go to the shops: I really should cut down on sugar its really unhealthy.  
> Me at the shops, specifically where I work: holy shit nerds are back! And we have reeses pieces and pushpops too! I cant not get them ive never had reeses pieces before...but i should really cut down on sugar...  
> Me at home, shovelling nerds into my mouth: fuck you

The hospital room is much louder with not only John awake and Elizabeth and James in it, but with Rose, Jade and Kanaya visiting as well.

They came earlier than they said they would, bearing gifts and food. The gifts included, as Kanaya promised, some handmade baby clothing as well as some surprise soft toys that Rose knitted for them.

Jade is the one holding Elizabeth, babbling in a baby voice as Elizabeth plays with one of her long plaits. Kanaya is leaning on her girlfriends shoulder, smiling down at the baby in her arms. James is being held by Dave, clinging determinedly to the soft toy Rose knitted him. Rose is sitting beside Dave, conversing with him. John is resting, but still animatedly chatting and making jokes with Jade and Kanaya.

 

“Who is such a little cutie? You are!” Jade coos, waving her other plait in Elizabeth's face.

“She is very cute.” Kanaya smiles, agreeing.

“I know.” John coos back, waving at his daughter. She stares at him, eyes wide, before her mouth breaks into a smile.

“I find they're both much more similar-looking to John that to Dave.” Kanaya states, glancing over at James in Dave's arms. “They both have your eyes, skin tone and roundish face shape. I think in the future they would both suit a nice bluey-green, like an aqua or a turquoise. I'll be happy to supply them with some clothing if you wish.”

“The wonders of the gene pool made them look like me.” John laughs. “Get it? Gene pool? Like the clothing?”

Dave looks over, pain in his eyes. “He's started making these terrible jokes and puns ever since he had Elizabeth and James. It's like he was possessed by the spirit of a dad and now he can't help but spew off a bad dad joke every few seconds.”

“You love it, and I'm a Dad now so you're going to have to get used to it.” John teases, poking Dave in the arm.

“I tolerate it.” Dave sniffs, turning away. John bursts out into laughter.

“I must admit, they are very cute.” Rose pauses, staring at Elizabeth, then James. He stares back, bright blue eyes meeting dark violet ones.

“Of course they are, they do have my genetics.” Dave replies, incredibly smug.

“Well I hope they don't inherit your arrogance.” Rose says. “James has already inherited your turned-up nose.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” Dave squawks, offended.

“Oh it's true! I can see it.” John pauses laughter to but in, before bursting back into laughter at Dave's indignant expression.

“You're all teaming up against me.” Dave grumbles.

“Aw Dave I'm sorry, you're just fun to make fun of.” John chuckles, patting Dave's hand. James wiggles slightly, turning his head to look at his dad. John gives him a little wave, smiling broadly.

Dave shifts James in his arms, ignoring John's apology, much to John's amusement. Instead he turns to the girls, purposefully changing topics. “So, what have you three been up too? We've been a little invested in the kids and ourselves and haven't had a good proper gossip in ages.”

“Oh! We've been great!” Jade's hair whips around as she turns her head to Dave, in the process ripping the plait from Elizabeth's hands. “The labs been so awesome! I've been working there for around five years now and it still gives me thrills to think about! Of course I can't exactly say what I'm working on--I'm under contract and all--but I can say that it involves chamaemelum nobile and different genres of music altering taste…” Jade gives a sly wink.

“I've been designing a new baby clothing line for the past few months.” Everyone looks at the clothing box set down neatly on the floor and the bodysuits both Elizabeth and James are sporting. “The full line is due to be out mid-March, but you two get it before it releases.”

“Thanks again for that.” John smiles warmly. “I know you're super busy with other designs and stuff, you really didn't have to create a full line for our children.”

“Nonsense, it's my pleasure. It was really no hassle.” Kanaya holds up a hand as if to stop any further thanks coming her way.

“Oh yeah!” Jade bounces up once more, full of energy. “We were also thinking of getting married!”

“Really!? Jade that's amazing!” John jumps upwards as well, faltering slightly and clutching his stomach with a wince. “When is it?”

“Yeah, that's pretty big deal. Like John said, when is it, also where is it, and what dress do you want me to wear as bridesmaid?” Dave shifts in his seat, containing his excitement.

“Well technically it's illegal.” Rose interrupts. “A polyamorous union such as ours is illegal in the United States. We can't exactly get married, however much we want to. But...we're looking into loopholes and ways to attempt it legally, but our only option seems to be to have it in Utah, and it technically won't be legal over here.”

“Oh…” John falters, sharing a sad glance with Dave. Jade and Kanaya look just as dejected. 

Jade's mouth breaks into a grin in an attempt to lighten the mood, but her green eyes are still sad. “But it's okay! We're happy together, we don't need to get married to have a successful relationship. There are plenty of examples of that!”

John still looks sad. “Let us know if you're going to. We'll be happy to help with whatever you need.”

“I don't exactly know how you can do that, but thank you.” Rose nods briefly.

Elizabeth lets out a loud shriek, immediately drawing everyone's attention to her.

“What's wrong, are you okay?” Jade coos, jumping her up and down to soothe her. This makes her start wailing, little arms reaching out to John. “Uh...I think she wants her dad.”

Jade passes the wailing baby over to John, who immediately attempts to comfort her. John holds her close to his chest, rocking her back and forth gently. “It's okay sweetheart, I've got you.”

James, reacting to his sisters crying, screws up his fists and waves them around, mouth wide open and eyes screwed shut. Dave attempts to comfort him, hushing him and stroking his head but apparently he's not having it.

“Give him here, I'll comfort him.” John shifts Elizabeth to one arm, holding out his other one for Dave to deposit James in. 

Dejectedly, Dave places the writhing James into John's arms. James immediately settles down, pressing his face into John's arm. Elizabeth stops wailing, blinking slightly up at him. 

John draws both of his children closer to his chest, kissing the tops of their heads softly. James breaks out in a wide grin and closes his eyes, while Elizabeth's gaze turns much sleepier. With a little bit of rocking and soothing words from John, both babies are soon asleep.

 

“I forgot to ask this earlier, but James is a shifter, correct?” Rose asks, looking at the sleeping baby in John's arms.

“He is, yeah.” Dave replies distractedly.

“When do they start shifting again? I don't know these milestones.” Rose wrinkles her nose, as if wracking her brains for all the baby milestones.

“At around six months old should be his first proper shift.” Dave explains, eyes flicking towards her briefly. “But it really depends on the child and what family of shifters they're from. James should be pretty good at it though, the Strider line are famed for being the best. Well, they  _ were _ , but that's besides the point.”

“He’ll have a good teacher.” John smiles softly. “You'll do great.”

“Aren't you sweet.” Dave smirks, leaning forward to kiss Elizabeth and James on the head, and John on the side of the mouth.

“Aren't you two sweet.” Jade smiles, clasping her hands together.

“They're sleepy.” John states the obvious. “I think they're a little tuckered out from the excitement of meeting you three.”

“Awww…” Jade coos.

“That's probably a sign we should get going.” Rose says, standing up.”Elizabeth and James are asleep, and you look like you're falling asleep where you sit. Dave you look...tired too. We should let you get some rest.”

“We're not tired!” John says, smiling widely. But his eyes are ringed with bags, and his smile crooked. Dave too, looks absolutely exhausted, although dabs of concealer under his eyes and his shades cover up the worst of the bags.

“Sure you aren't.” Rose raises an eyebrow. “But we should get going regardless.”

“Awww, yeah we probably should.” Jade pouts as she stands up and wraps a hand around her girlfriend's shoulders. “But we'll definitely visit later.”

“Oh great! I can't wait then.” John stifles a yawn with his palm. “I'm sorry I'm just a little tired. Oh...that goes against my point from earlier doesn't it? Oh well.”

“It was lovely to meet your children.” Kanaya rises, clasping her hands together near her stomach. “I'm honoured to be their aunty.”

“C’mon, give us a hug before we go.” Jade holds her arms out wide, moving towards them. 

“Oh fuck yes.” Dave holds his own arms wide and embraces Jade, both members of the hug squeezing as hard as possible. Jade gives good hugs, and usually Dave isn't exactly the most affectionate of people (in public, of course), but he's been in a good mood lately. “Come on Rose, Kanaya, let's share the hug.”

“No thank you.” Kanaya says, in unison with her girlfriends: “I would rather not.”

Dave hugs them both anyway, squeezing tightly and ignoring their protests.

Jade scoops John, Elizabeth and James into a hug much gentler than her usual hugs. John is unable to hug back with the twins in his arms but still enjoys the sentiment.

“I should probably get going too. Visiting hours are pretty much up, and it's getting late and I need dinner.” Dave says, frowning. It is evident in his posture that he doesn't want to leave.

“Awww no.” John pouts. “Stay for a bit longer?”

“I can't.” Dave looks sorrowful as he places a kiss atop James and Elizabeth's heads. “You know if I could, I would. I'll come back as soon as I can, but production may run a little late tomorrow, so I'll probably be later than usual.”

“I understand. Your work is important too.” John leans up and gives him a soft peck on the cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Dave mumbles, voice quiet.

“Bye John! We'll see you soon, we promise!” Jade gives him one final hug.

“Goodbye John.” Kanaya nods her head in his direction.

“Have a good night.” Rose smiles. “Don't let the bed bugs bite.”

“Come back soon.” John smiles widely, waving the best he can with his arms full. But there is a lonely, sorrowful look in his eyes as Dave, Rose, Kanaya and Jade leave his hospital room. He has Elizabeth and James for company, but they are babies and not exactly able to hold a conversation and keep the crushing loneliness at bay. He loves them, they're his entire world but...it's not enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed :)   
> Also anyone remember that botw crossover fic i was talking about? I just thought it would be a few thousand words and a oneshot, but now im at 20 000 words and theres still the final chapter to go so??? It's pretty good tho, best thing ive written so far so? Keep an eye out for that on the johndave tag


	50. 30 Years Old. Coming Home.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John, Elizabeth and James are finally able to go home.

“Alright Mr Egbert, you're free to go.” The receptionist smiles brightly, her voice high, and a little grating.

John is too happy to care, beaming widely. He's finally able to go home! He's still all achy and painy, but everything will all be better at home.

Dave stands beside him, gently rolling a pram back and forth. James is fast asleep but Elizabeth is wide awake, staring at her surroundings with wide eyes.

“I can't wait, it's been far too long.” John smiles, letting out a huge sigh. “There's nothing like sleeping in your own bed, those hospital beds are super uncomfortable.”

The receptionist laughs good-naturedly. “Yes, I've been told they are.”

“Alright, you're all signed out, let's skedaddle on out of here.” Dave makes a motion towards the door. He slowly backs away from the reception desk,  wheeling the twins with him.

“I'm coming, I'm coming, don't get your knickers in a knot.” John laughs. He waves a goodbye to the receptionist as he hurries up to Dave. “And I thought I was impatient to get home.”

Dave wheels the pram out of the hospital doors, John walking as fast as he can after him. He's in pain dammit, can't Dave wait a second?

“Sorry for rushing off on you.” Dave apologises once they're outside. He gives John an incredibly genuine look. “I know how much you miss home, and also how much you chat so I tried to hurry you up so you wouldn't chat with that receptionist all day.”

“Is that a hint of jealousy I detect?” John places his hands on his hips, a playful smile on his lips.

“No.” Dave shoots back, far too quickly.

John snorts a laugh. “Sure thing mister. Now, where did you park the car?”

“Just down the street. I parked as close as I could.” Dave answers. “I'll lead the way.”

“What a gentleman.” John smiles, taking Dave's free hand in his own. He's missed this.

 

The car isn't too far away, parked only around 50 metres from the hospital entrance, on the opposite side of the road. The walk is a lot slower than it normally would be, due to both the pram and John's slower walking pace.

Dave fumbles with his keys, unlocking the slightly beat up car. “You sit down, I'll deal with the twins and the pram.”

“Are you sure? It'll be quicker with my help.” John pauses in front of the open car door.

“I'm sure. Have a sit down.” Dave gestures towards the car door in front of John, while opening the back door of the car.

“Well if you insist.” John sits down, buckling himself up. While worried for Dave, he's glad to do some relaxing.

Dave lifts the twins into the car one by one--first Elizabeth, then James. They go in easily, slotted into the little baby car seats. James wakes up, startled by the change in scenery and being jostled around. Dave kisses them both on the head, soothing them both. Really, they're not too hard to place in the car. It's the pram that is the struggle.

The darn thing is impossible to fold. Dave suspects they're specifically designed as torture devices with all the trouble he's having. Well, of course not for the children inside, but for the person trying to fold it up. There's a little lever you're supposed to pull, which supposedly collapses the thing, but it just won't budge. John watches him with a pitying gaze, but any move he makes to help Dave halts with a hand. Eventually he manages to get it to budge and flatten the pram, shoving it in the boot of the car. Frustrated, Dave closes the boot, and half-storms his way around to the drivers side.

“Those things are fucking bullshit.”

“Dave, please don't swear in front of the children.” John replies automatically. “If you want, I'll help you do it next time.”

“Sorry.” Dave apologises, sticking his keys in the ignition and starting the car. “And, that would be nice, thanks.”

John places his hand on Dave's, already on the analog stick. Tenderly, he traces his fingers up and down Dave's knuckles. Dave gives him a quick smile before turning his attention back to the car. Attention now fully on the road, Dave reverses the car, cautiously exiting his parking spot.

John stares out the window as Dave drives away from the hospital, looking at all the scenery he's missed in the past month whizz by.

The drive from the hospital to their apartment takes about 20 minutes. It's a 20 minutes that John spends with his face and hands pressed against the window. The trees leaves have regrown, green and fresh. People are busy and bustling about on the streets. Familiar sights; the park, the shops, the little corner-shop café that John used to work at.

Finally after what seems to be an eternity, Dave parks in front of their apartment building. John unclips his seatbelt, flinging open the car door and emerging from the car as quickly as possible. Nothing has changed much, but he's only been gone for a month. John turns around slowly, soaking in the sights. The snow is gone, replaced by the greening leaves. Dave watches him with amusement, taking a little longer to get out of the car.

Elizabeth, who was silent for most of the car ride, now starts wailing for attention. John stops his little reverie and goes to tend to her, lifting her out of the car seat and cradling her in his arms.

“Oh no sweetheart, I've got you. We're home now! This is where we live, not that hospital room.” John coos, soothing her. She settles down, staring up at the apartment building before her.

“I'll give them both a tour of the apartment once we're in there.” Dave says, pulling the pram out of the boot.

“How grown up of you.” John smiles. “I'm sure they can understand the grown up implications of a tour.”

“I'll brew you up some tea and set you up all comfortable in bed, so you can ignore my obvious attempt at bonding with my children.” Dave sniffs, resuming his struggle in unfolding the pram. “Now help me with this wouldja?”

“Hold on, I'll put Elizabeth down.” John gently places Elizabeth back down in her car seat before turning his attention back to Dave. He holds his hands out expectantly. “Give it here, I'll undo it. You tend to the babies.”

Begrudgingly, Dave passes the pram over to John. John leans down and pulls the lever, which immediately unfolds the pram. By then Dave has gotten the twins out of the car, holding them securely to his chest. John takes James from his arms and deposits him into the pram. Dave does the same to Elizabeth, before tucking them both in with a blanket.

“What do you think Mittens will think of them?” John asks, grabbing the pram and gently pushing it towards the apartment.

“Well I gave her the whole ‘baby’ talk and she scratched me, so I think she'll take it well.” Dave quickly closes up the car, hurrying after John. “Besides, she already knows. She saw you pregnant remember?”

“How has she been? Did she miss me?” John asks, tone soft as he wheels the pram into the building. It's just as underwhelming as he remembers it, but he's glad to see it regardless.

“She's clawed up my leg multiple times, growled at me, hissed at me and bit me, so I'd say there's no difference going on.” Dave snorts.

“Nothing's changed then!” John laughs, pram halting in front of the stairs.

Wordlessly, Dave picks up the other end of the pram and together, they begin their awkward ascent. Both of the twins start crying, but nothing can be done at the moment. Dave does his best to soothe them by making funny faces.

“God, I hope we don't have to do that every single time.” Dave pants once they've reached their floor. He places a soft kiss on both Elizabeth and James heads before standing.

“We will probably have to.” John picks up speed. With home so close he can taste it, who can blame him for picking up speed? The apartments pass by until he's standing in front of his own apartment. Reality sets in and John finds himself holding back a few tears.

“Hold on.” Dave digs around in his pocket, pulling out his keys. He fumbles around with the key ring, keys jangling loudly, until finding the right key. The door unlocks with a click, opening agonizingly slowly.

John wheels the pram inside. Almost immediately, he is greeted with a loud meow, and a furry body pressed against his ankles.

“Oh hello Mittens! I missed you too!” John coos, gently lifting her into the air and nuzzling his face in her fur. She purrs, long and loud. John laughs, holding Mittens with one hand and wheeling the pram with the other, waltzing around the room.

Dave closes the door behind him, looking at them all with a hand on his hips. “Aren't you excited?”

“Yeah.” John laughs, placing Mittens down on the couch and giving her butt a rough pat. “I've missed this all.”

“I missed you being here too.” Dave admits. “Here--I’ll give the twins a little tour before I chuck the kettle on.”

“You don't have to give them a tour right now Dave--look at them, they're all tuckered out.” Indeed, as Dave lifts Elizabeth out of the pram, she is fast asleep. James too is asleep, clutching an overly large plush cat toy.

“Oh…” That's disappointing. Dave really wanted to do that.

“Aww Davey it's okay, you can do that when they wake up!” John drifts around the room like a much livelier ghost. He comes to a halt in front of the grand piano Dave gifted him a few years ago. Longingly, his fingers drift over the keys, a few notes play out underneath his fingertips. “Oh I've missed you…”

James wakes up, quietly waving his arms about to get picked up. Dave obliges, resting a child in each arm. James looks at John almost eagerly as John taps out a few simple tunes.

James looks thoroughly interested in what John's doing, and thoroughly disappointed when John stops. He's so disappointed in fact, that he starts crying.

“Oh no, come here sweetheart.” John coos, scooping up his son. “I'll play some more for you.”

John perches himself on the piano seat, settling James comfortably on his lap. His fingers dart over the keys in a multitude of patterns and ways, all entertaining his son.

“Come on Elizabeth, lets leave them be. I'll boil the kettle and make myself useful.” Dave turns to his daughter, now awake in his arms due to the noise of the piano.

He walks into the kitchen, taking a small moment to look at it. It's been a bit misused over the past months--Dave isn't the best cook. He did his best to cook something, but most nights he settled for takeaway. It's unhealthy, yeah, but Dave didn't really want to disturb the neatness of the kitchen.

He lifts the kettle up and, flicking on the tap, begins to fill it up. Elizabeth watches the water with a vague curiosity. Once it fills up Dave pulls it back, turning the tap off and flicking the kettle on to a boil.

While it boils he digs around the cupboard for mugs. He grabs John's favourite mug first--a rather large reactive mug that displays the quote ‘Think this is cool? You should see the person drinking from me.’ when heated--and grabbing a plain red boring one for himself.

He places them both on the kitchen bench, placing an English Breakfast teabag in each cup. He pulls out the sugar bowl before pausing, calling out to John in the living room. “John, do you still take sugar in your tea?”

“Yeah, two teaspoons!” Comes the reply.

“You're going to get so many cavities.” Dave says fondly, more to himself as he tips in two teaspoons of sugar. By now the kettle has boiled, and Dave steadily pours the boiling water into both cups.

“You have it black, and sugarless! That's basically hot leaf water! At least I have a sense of taste.” John retaliates. He says something John doesn't catch, but due to the high-pitched murmur it was most likely directed at James.

Dave just makes a face at Elizabeth, who giggles slightly. “Isn't he so nice to me?” He dips the bags into the tea until they've completely brewed and chucks them down the sink.

Bobbing Elizabeth up and down, he grabs the milk out of the fridge and pours some into John's tea, quickly placing it back into the fridge. Done making tea, he awkwardly gathers both cups in one hand and, careful not to spill it, carries it out into the living room.

John is still happily playing piano for an equally happy James, but John's eyes still light up when Dave places his cup on the top of the piano.

“Thank you my dear.” John pauses in his song to grab the cup and take a sip. “I've missed the way you make me tea.”

“John that's a really weird thing to miss.” Dave snort-laughs.

“Yeah, but I still missed it. I missed a lot of things.” John places the mug back down and resumes his song. “I missed you.”

Dave gives off a small smile and sits himself down on the couch. He settles Elizabeth down beside him, patting her head softly as he sips his tea. Mittens, who had settled down on the couch prior, hisses at him but Dave just waves her off. He's too ecstatic to care about what she does, and this is the happiest he's seen her all month.

John plays on. The apartment fills with noise, proper noise, for the first time in a month. Everything is going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly who knows anymore I've got a bio test this morning and I'm updating yall with this shit instead of studying.  
> Also I've been replaying mother 3 and I love it so much??? Best game, worst game.


	51. 31 Years Old. The Long-ass Road to Starting Testosterone.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Like it says on the chapter title.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now as you all know, I'm not trans and I also haven't been to a therapist before??? So I've done my best and I hope you enjoy. Please call me out if I've done anything wrong, but it's really hard to find online information about ftm transitioning after pregnancy so :/  
> Sorry if this took so long to come out but its pretty long and I am sleep deprived.

A piercing wail rings through the silent house, startling John awake. He thought maybe tonight he'd get some rest...he really didn't know what he was expecting. This is the fourth night in a row he's been woken up early to feed the twins.

Dave hasn't been disturbed by Elizabeth's cry yet, and if John's careful he won't have to be.

The tricky thing is to slip out of Dave's arms without waking him up. Dave has a tight, death-like grip in sleep, arms wrapped around John and laying on top of him. It's sweet but a little inconvenient. Luckily, John has a trick up his sleeve.

John gently scratches at Dave's chest plumage, lovingly stroking the feathers. It's a ticklish spot, and John always uses this trick to incapacitate Dave. Dave makes a soft, unconscious noise of  _ something _ and loosens his grip on John.

John slips through Dave's wings, pulling off the sheets he found himself tangled up in. He rises, blearily looking around. Everything is blurry. He fumbles around for a bit, half blind in the darkness, before his hand finds his glasses on their position on his bedside table. 

“John…?” Dave's voice is sleepy and very disorientated. Dammit, John thought he was quiet!

“Don't worry Dave, the twins are just hungry. Go back to bed.” John looks back at him. His eyes are currently doing the thing that most cat eyes do--shining back at him in the darkness.

Dave blinks, slowly. “I can't just leave them with you like that.”

“Dave it's okay, you need sleep. Look at you, all ruffly feathers and sleepy eyes.” John gives him a soft smile, slipping his glasses on. “I need to do it anyway.”

“I'll help.” Dave pushes the covers aside and rises. It's too late to stop him now.

“Alright.” John agrees. “But you're not allowed to complain about it.”

“Fair.” Dave shrugs, getting up completely. He stretches, arms stretched forward and wings stretched outward before he shifts into his human form. He refuses to show his true form to the twins, despite all John's protests. John just gives him a sad look.

John opens their bedroom door, immediately making the sound of Elizabeth's cry louder and less muffled. John quickens his pace, quickly opening the nursery with Dave in tow. He flicks the light switch on, illuminating the room.

The cot lies in the centre of the room, on top of a soft white rug. Baby toys are scattered about the room in clumps. John has to step carefully towards the cot, lest he trip and fall on something.

 

He picks his wailing daughter up in an attempt to sooth her, and her hands fly straight to his chest. Ah. She wants food. Not him. What was he expecting?

Sighing, John lifts his shirt up and supports her. She latches on with determination, noise quieting.

Dave holds out James, pulling out a chair for John at the same time. John sits, taking James into his other arm. James latches on to the other one, and John shifts both in discomfort and to support them.

“Dave, don't look.” John feels a flush of embarrassment and finds himself drawing closer in on himself.

“John, it's fine, I've seen you do this before.” Dave waves off his concerns, swatting them away as if you would a fly.

“Dave. Please.” It must be the hurt in John's voice because Dave turns right around, back facing John.

“I'm sorry. I love you. I'll let you do your thing.” He says, intently staring at the white walls on the nursery as if doing so will alleviate John's embarrassment.

“I'm sorry Dave, I love you too. I didn't mean to snap at you I just…” John sighs, looking down. “I've had really, really bad dysphoria lately.”

“Oh shit, why didn't you say anything?” Dave is half-turned around before he remembers John's awkwardness and keeps his back to John.

“I don't know, it wasn't necessary.” John huffs out a laugh. “But I feel...disgusting...all the time, and it doesn't help I'm basically a feeding bag for these too. Makes me feel like some sort of...of gospel mother or something.”

“I don't know what to say...are you okay?” Dave asks, feeling utterly and hopelessly helpless.

“No.” John winces. “I want to transition, like properly. I want the surgery, I want to start taking testosterone. I know it's expensive, but I need to do this. I'm sorry.”

“Don't apologize.” Dave shakes his head. “We'll get something sorted I promise. Next time you go to your therapist you can talk about transitioning right?”

“I will.” John sighs. Elizabeth has now finished, and she sleepily settles down into John's arms. “I see her on the weekend, I'll talk to her then. I need this, I know it'll be expensive but I need it...I'm sorry, I just needed to get that off my chest. Well that and two other things.”

Dave laughs, he can't help it. That one's pretty funny. “Don't apologize, please. It's not your fault you've been placed inside the wrong body and stuff. If you need money, I'll happily provide it. Anything you need, don't hesitate to let me know.”

“Oh Dave, you spoil me…” John smiles. James finishes feeding too, and promptly falls asleep. John smiles wider, letting out a little laugh. “Come on, help me put them both to bed and then we'll both go back to bed, huh?”

“Alright.” Dave turns back around at takes James back from John's arms. James doesn't stir as his father strokes his back, and then gently places him down in the cot beside his sister. Dave lays an arm over John's shoulder, pressing a kiss to his temple. “I love you, okay? I'll stand by you no matter what. I love all three of you so much, you're my entire world. So I promise I'll help you transition in any way I can, whether it be pay for the surgery or give you lifts to the therapist.”

“Come on you big sap.” John rolls his eyes, laughing quietly and leaning into Dave's shoulder. “Let's go to bed.”

 

☆☆☆

 

“So John, how have you been lately?” His therapists voice is calm, kind, with hints of authority laced through it.

Her name is Dr. Ada MacKillop. She's been in the therapist business for 50 years and has repeatedly assured John that she's heard and seen much worse. She's rather old, with dark bobbed hair and half-moon spectacles resting on a longish nose and a no-nonsense attitude that helped John through his pregnancy.

“Oh good, good. I can't complain.” John twiddles his thumbs and shuffles his feet. “Dave's good, the twins are fine. Elizabeth is laughing at us a whole lot, and James loves being cradled. It's really sweet.”

“That's lovely to hear.” Dr. MacKillop smiles warmly, shuffling a few papers on her neat and orderly desk. “But I sense that's not all you want to talk about now, is it?”

“No.” John takes a deep breath before letting it out. “I want to start transitioning. Transition as in start taking testosterone and to get surgery.”

“Oh.” Dr. MacKillop doesn't seem surprised. “Go on.”

“Well, ever since I gave birth I've had really bad feelings of gender dysphoria.” John clenches his hands into fists and grits his teeth. “I never got it before, it's really weird and hard to explain...but it's not a nice feeling.”

“Of course it isn't.” Dr. MacKillop shakes her head. “But how exactly do you feel?”

“Bad. I feel weak and feeble all the time. My vagina is in pain, literally all the time. I'm also super horny the other half of the time, but because everything still hurts so much I can't have sex and alleviate that. I'm so snappy and emotional all the time and even though Dave denies it, I know it's frustrating for him.” John's eyes drift downwards in shame. “I feel like I can't control myself. There's just this constant feeling of wrongness in my body, no matter what I do. Sometimes it gets so bad I throw up, although that's only happened a few times. A lot of the time I feel like I'm not even in my own body, like I'm some sort of ghost watching it from afar.”

“Well during and after pregnancy there is of course, as you should know as a doctor, a surge of hormones. Some people slip into a post natal depression after giving birth. It's a hard time for many. I understand your need to transition.” Dr. MacKillop says, her hand waving around as she talks. “However, as you are breastfeeding your children, I cannot prescribe you testosterone yet. You'll have to wean your children off breast milk and to the formula milk in a few months time.”

“Would me taking testosterone be dangerous for them?” John frowns at her sadly. He wants to start transitioning as quickly as possible, but not if it hurts his children.

“While you're lactating, yes.” Dr. MacKillop nods. “The testosterone will cause the milk to dry up. It could also affect the children.”

“Oh…”

“I would suggest you start to wean them off breast milk when they're about 4 months old, so you can begin taking testosterone.” Dr. MacKillop explains, writing something down on a notepad.

“Ok...ok that's only a few months. I can last that long. I've lasted 31 years.” John breathes in, and out, steadying himself.

“Of course, we will have our regular check ups during the period between now and then.” Dr. MacKillop finishes writing on the notepad and, ripping off the paper, hands it to John. “Here's what I want you to do, as a reminder. I also wrote down the link to a good website that should help you. You can check it out, or not.”

“Oh thank you.” John takes the paper and places it in his shorts pocket. A bell sound rings through the air, signifying the end of their session. That was a surprisingly fast half-hour, but John isn't complaining too much.

“Ah, it seems our time is up for this session. I'll see you next week.” Dr. MacKillop rises to her feet, leaning forward at her desk to shake John's hand.

“Oh, yeah! See you then. Goodbye, and thanks for today.” John smiles,shaking her hand. Her handshake is firm and confident.

“It's my job.” Dr. MacKillop shrugs, mischievous smile on her mouth. “I'm paid to help people with their problems.”

“Alright, goodbye.” John laughs politely at her joke, slinging his bag over his shoulder. Offering her a polite little wave, he exits her office.

 

Dave is waiting for him outside, gently rocking the pram back and forth. He perks up as soon as he sees John coming over. “Hey John, you all done here?”

“Yeah, I'm all good.” John smiles back at him wearily.

“So, when are you starting testosterone?” Dave asks, standing. A supportive smile is on his face.

“A few months.” John sighs, sullenly looking at Dave. “Starting testosterone will mess with the twins while I'm breastfeeding, so I have to wean them off it first.”

“Oh…” Dave falters for a second, before that supportive smile is back on his face. “Hey it's okay, you can make it. I believe in you. Until then, I'll support you by making up for your lack of a dick with my personality.”

John chokes out a laugh, struggling to keep it contained. It turns into a loud, barking thing that has most of the waiting room glaring at him. “--Dave!”

“I'm sorry.” Dave says, not looking too sorry. “I'm just trying to say I love you.”

“Aren't you such a romantic.” John snorts, covering his mouth with his hand.

“Come on, let's get going.” Dave bumps John's shoulder with his own shoulder. “These two were getting a little restless waiting for you, and so was I. I've taped some Gordon Ramsay Kitchen Nightmares on the TV and I want to snuggle down in bed and watch it with you.”

“Does that include the one with the lady who speaks cat?” John asks, looking up at Dave. He always has a way of making John feel better, even without doing anything.

“You know it, that's the best one.” Dave grins. “Crazy Amy and her fucking cat sons is my spirit animal.”

“Oh, thank goodness.” John laughs.

 

☆☆☆

 

“The trick to making a delicious and fluffy cupcake is to fold in the wet and dry ingredients.” John explains, as he does exactly that.

It's a nice sunny day outside, a perfect time to teach Rose how to cook. Rose, Jade and Kanaya have visited often in the past three months to see their niece and nephew. On their last visit, Rose expressed her desire to learn how to cook to surprise her girlfriends and here she is now, learning how to cook cupcakes under John's instructions. She's starting simple, soon to work her way up to the bigger dishes.

“What does that accomplish?” Rose asks, squinting at the batter as she perches daintily on her kitchen stool. Her own bowl is sat in front of her, ingredients unmixed.

“I  _ just _ said it makes it nice and fluffy Rose.” John says, a twinkle in his eye.

“Okay geez John, no need to be rude. You're teaching me how to cook, I'm allowed to ask questions.” Rose replies, raising an eyebrow. She dips her spoon in and begins to fold the ingredients together.

“Sorry Rose. Now, I always add cinnamon to the batter because I find it makes it taste a lot better.” John continues on, stirring the batter gently.

“You sound like a celebrity chef.” Rose laughs. “Next you'll be telling me to buy your book and telling me all sugar should be banned and junk food prices should be raised so poor people can't afford to eat.”

“Well Rose, it's only $19.99 and it's quite a bargain, really. You can buy it at your local bookstore.” John grins, laughing at her glare. 

“You've told me the price and where to get it, but not its name. Could it be that you care more so for the money than you do actually teaching people to cook?” Rose says, all the while a smug look is on her face.

“Oh no, you've caught me out.” John laughs. His mixture is now smooth and fully mixed, a nice yellow colour. Rose's mixture is a lot lumpier and definitely looks a whole lot worse than his. “Alright yours needs a little more stirring.”

Rose lets out a groan.

“Hey, it's okay. I can mix it for you if you pour the cupcake batter in the pre-prepared tins.” John offers. Before he can say anything else Rose has pulled the pre-prepared tray closer towards her.

“Oh, thanks John, I'll do that then.”

John sighs and shakes his head with a smile on his face. He takes Rose's batter and starts vigorously stirring it.

Rose busies herself by pouring John's batter into the little patties. While she's generally graceful as a rule, that doesn't stop her from getting mixture on the top parts of the tray and on the bench.

John finishes smoothing out Rose's mixture and aids her in pouring the mixture in the trays. Fairly soon they're out of mixture and trays.

 

“Hey, how's your cupcakes coming along?” Jade appears from behind Rose, wrapping her arms around Rose's waist. Jade rests her head on Rose's shoulder and stares at the cupcake trays full of batter.

“No Jade, you can't lick the bowl. It's unhealthy and it's got raw egg in it. You'll get salmonella.” Rose looks dead ahead, but she doesn't bother to hide the gentle smile on her face.

“That's a bullshit myth and you know it.” Jade leans forward and grabs a wooden spoon coated with batter and licks it, regardless of Rose's protests.

“When you have salmonella don't come crying to me.” Rose sniffs.

“Well I find the batter delicious and I can't wait until the finished project.” Jade announces. “How long until they're done?”

“Well, I have to add the toppings, and then they'll be baked for about twenty minutes.” John explains, scooping a spoonful of diced apples from a nearby bowl. “Now Rose could you sprinkle a few apples on each cupcake? They should  only need 2-3 apples on each.”

“Yeah, sure.” Rose does as he instructs, taking great care as she does so. They work until every cupcake has a few diced apples on top, Jade watching every single one.

“Now--” John holds up a small bowl of cinnamon sugar. “--we need to sprinkle this over the cupcakes. It'll crisp up in the oven and add an extra crunch.”

“My mouth is already watering.” Jade laughs, watching with fascination as her girlfriend and best friend sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the cupcakes.

Once that is all done, John opens the oven doors. With Rose passing him trays, he fills up the oven. John closes the door and sets the timer.

“It should be around 20 minutes. How about we sit with the others while we wait?” John suggests, turning to Rose and Jade.

“Yes I would like to hold your children.” Rose gets up off her stool, moving into the living room.

 

“Look Kanaya, I can balance her on my shoulders.” Dave is saying loudly, with Elizabeth perched upon his shoulders. Elizabeth seems unfazed, babbling to herself.

“Please do not do that.” Kanaya stares worriedly at the baby on Dave's shoulders. Dave is holding her securely but that doesn't deter her worry. 

James is seated on his aunties lap, staring up at Elizabeth. As John enters the room, his head whips around and a smile fills his face as he stares at his dad. John pokes his tongue out playfully at him.

“John look, she's balancing.” Finding Kanaya not providing the adequate response, Dave turns his attention to John.

“You better not drop her.” John says, sitting beside Dave on the couch. He curls up his feet under him and leans against Dave's body.

“I won't! Why does everyone have such little faith in me?” Dave says, pouting a little.

“Because you're holding a three month old baby on your shoulders like its no big deal.” John explains, looking up at his daughter. 

“I'm holding her tightly, she's fine.” She does seem fine, content to stare at him from her position on Dave's shoulders.

“Bah.” She says, as if to emphasize Dave's point.

“Okay then, if you trust him.” John laughs, cracking a smile.

“Awwww.” Jade coos.

“Hey, when are those cupcakes due out of the oven?” Dave asks, bobbing Elizabeth up and down on his shoulders. She lets out little giggles.

“Wow, I knew you only liked me for my cooking.” John says, putting on a mock offended expression.

“No John, you know I love you for more than that. I'm just hungry and you made my favourite.” Dave replies, placing a hand on John's hand briefly before it goes back to Elizabeth's leg.

“Of course I did. It's your favourite after all, and we need someone to eat all the excess.” John explains, smiling softly.

“Can you tell me which ones you made and which one Rose made so I can avoid her ones?” Dave asks, smug smirk on his face.

“Why do you have such little faith in me?” Rose interrupts, narrowing her eyes at Dave. “It was a combined effort.”

“Rose, no.” Dave says, voice taking on an explanatory tone. “John has a certain way with baked goods which he would not have passed onto you in ten minutes.”

“Aw, stop teasing her Davey, she did well.” John laughs, pressing his face into Dave's shoulder. Elizabeth's leg presses against his forehead.

“Of course she did.” Jade grins, flopping down onto the floor, running her hands through the carpet. “Rose is great at a lot of things.”

“How have you guys been? I don't believe we've asked yet.” Kanaya interrupts, giving the group a brief smile. James wiggles slightly on her lap, adjusting himself.

“Oh, we're fine. Bit tired from being woken up at around three in the morning  and from looking after two adorable babies. Hopefully I start to take testosterone in a month.” John answers, sharing a smile with Dave.

“Yeah, it's pretty full on. I have a script I have to work on too, but I can work on that at home.” Dave continues for John.

“Oh yes! I heard about that! Good luck!” Jade pipes up, big smile on her face as she bobs up and down. “Well, to John's testosterone thing, but also to Dave's movie script!”

“Yeah, it's going to be pretty epic.” Dave leans back, smug smile on his face. “I have so many cool plans and instead of separating them, I'm mashing them all together into one big clusterfuck of epic proportions.”

“If it's not the twins waking me up at 3 in the morning it's Dave with a new idea to write down and, if I'm lucky, discuss with me.”

“Ah I feel you.” Jade places a hand over her heart. “Rose does the same thing with story ideas, and Kanaya has done it a few times too. I'm in the middle and I always feel it when one of them gets up and dumps all the covers on me!”

“Dave steals  _ all _ my blankets.” John pouts.

“I  _ am _ your blanket.” Dave rolls his eyes. “You use my wings as a blanket and bury yourself in my chest like you're digging for treasure.”

“ _ You _ drape them over  _ me _ .” John protests, huffing.

“Details, details.” Dave shrugs. “You love it though.”

“I mean it's a little suffocating to sleep under all those feathers…” John gives a coy smile at Dave's offended expression. “I'm kidding Dave. I do love it.”

“Bah!” Elizabeth shrieks again, waving her hands about. Dave lifts her off his shoulders and places her down on his lap.

“Hello.” John coos at her. She gives him a blank look in return.

 

The room fills with the smell of cupcakes, sweet and apple-scented, making everyone in the rooms mouths water. 

“How long until those cupcakes are done?” Jade whines, shuffling her legs on the ground.

“Probably…” John glances down at his watch. “Now. Maybe, I'll go check. Rose, you coming?”

“I suppose I have to, don't I?” Rose grumbles.

John just smiles, placing a soft kiss on Elizabeth's forehead before getting up. As he passes Kanaya and James, he gives his son an affectionate head pat. Still complaining although mostly to herself, Rose rises, following John into the kitchen.

Inside the kitchen, the smell of baked goods is even stronger. John opens the oven and, pulling out a tray, tests the nearest cupcake with a skewer. It's clean. They're ready.

John begins pulling out the trays, armed with oven mitts. Rose lays out tea towels for John to lay the trays on.

“How have you been, really?” Rose asks once all the trays have been taken out of the oven.

“Alright. I could be better, but I'm mostly alright.” John knows better than to lie to Rose. She has some crazy, lie-sensing powers.

“That's good.” Rose nods. “I worry about you sometimes. You bottle things up so much and you don't notice how close you are to breaking until it's too late. We're here for you John.”

“I know.” John sighs, staring sadly at the trays upon trays of cupcakes on his kitchen bench. “It's hard, but I'm trying.”

“Good, I'm glad.” Rose smiles, the majority of her worry slipping away.

“Alright so these cupcakes need to cool for around five minutes before we can take them out of the tray.” John explains, while he cautiously takes two of the nearest cupcakes out of their tray. “But, there's no harm in having some right now. They're piping hot and fresh.”

“Thanks for helping to teach me how to cook. Hopefully Jade and Kanaya appreciate it.” Rose takes the offered cupcake, biting into it.

“It's no problem Rose! I have six more months of pregnancy leave, I need something to keep my mind occupied. Come over any time.” John replies, eating his cupcake with slow, steady bites.

Rose laughs politely, before she sets her now empty cupcake wrapper on the bench. She widens her arms and embraces John in a rare hug. “Thank you. I'm serious.”

“It's fine Rose, really.” John mumbles, a little embarrassed. 

Rose breaks away from the hug, smiling nicely. “I know John, I know.”

 

☆☆☆

 

“So John, how have you been lately?” Dr MacKillop greets John before John even sits down on the chair.

“Oh yeah, you know, I'm pretty good.” John replies, sitting down. “Elizabeth and James have been properly weaned off breast milk and towards cow milk with formula.”

“That's good, I'll be able to prescribe you testosterone now. But first I have ask you a few questions to make sure your feelings haven't changed.” She holds up a hand before John can protest. “I'm sorry, it's just procedure. Some people have second thoughts.”

“I won't.” John scowls. “I know I won't. I've been certain of this since I was a teenager.”

“I know, but like I said, it's procedure.” Dr MacKillop says. “Now, have your feelings changed since our last session?”

“No.” John replies, attempting to smile. He knows she's just doing her job.

“Alright, now I must ask, how bad is your gender dysphoria?” Dr MacKillop is writing everything down on her notebook, writing down John's every word.

“Bad. I dissociate a lot. I physically cannot look down at myself without getting waves of nausea. I find it hard to get changed, or have showers, or go to the toilet because it sickens me that much.” John explains, eyes darting to the side.

“How often do you have it?” Dr MacKillop looks up briefly from her not taking.

John gives a dull laugh. “When don't I have it? It's always there, it just flares up and dies down. Sometimes I feel only a little bad, and then other times it all becomes too much. I can't stand it.”

“Hmmm.” Dr MacKillop nods thoughtfully, scribbling something down on her notebook. “Are you absolutely sure you want to take testosterone and have gender realignment surgery?”

“Yes, I'm certain.” John nods, clenching his fist. “Nothing will change that.”

“Then it all checks out. I'll prescribe the testosterone to you.”

Dr MacKillop hands a piece of paper over to John. John breathes out a big sigh of relief. “Thank you.”

“However, I need to track your progress while you use them.” Dr MacKillop explains.

“Yeah, I understand.” John replies, eyes glued to the prescription note clutched in his hands. After years of putting it off and months of fucking around with it, he's finally starting testosterone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also if anyone is interested, the first chap of the botw fic should be up on Wednesday (Australian time) so you should totally check that out??? It's great I promise.


	52. 31 Years Old. First Shift.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While taking a bath with his sister, James has his first shift.

It's been six months and Dave still can't get over how cute his children are. He doesn't think he'll ever get over that fact.

Elizabeth is a feisty little thing, always intent on letting others know what she wants. She seems to only like a select group of people; James, John, Dave, Rose, Kanaya, Jade and Dad. The last time Dirk tried to pick her up she wailed so loudly Dave's ears rang for an hour afterward. She's begun crawling, and boy is she determined to get everywhere.

James is always quiet, observing his surroundings with a strange calmness. He loves sleeping and cuddling, especially with John. He gets most excited when John plays the piano, so much so that John has taken to putting him on his lap before he begins to play.

Dave is of course, filming everything. 

He's a film director, an artist, it's in his blood. He's also a parent, an incredibly proud parent with access to expensive video cameras. Who can blame him for filming everything? Besides, he's saving it all for their 21st.

John calls him ‘Mr Cameraman’ with a fond and exasperated smile on his face whenever Dave waves it in his face. John gets it. Mostly.

Dave feels the need to treasure all the little moments, as well as all the big ones and the ones in between. Rose suggested its due to his troubled childhood of abuse and neglect and wanting to be the opposite of what his own father was. She's probably right.

 

“Dave, put your camera away and help me.” John glares at him, holding a writhing, naked Elizabeth in his arms. “I really don't think 21 year old Elizabeth will appreciate you filming her having a bath and showing it at the birthday dinner you're planning out already.”

“Come on John, it's sweet. Look, James loves it.” Dave zooms in on James’ smiling face, already in the bath on his little baby holder thing.

“Dave. Help. Me.” John's voice goes very low and his face goes dark. Dave switches off the camera and places it down carefully on the bathroom sink. “Okay, sorry what do you need help with?”

“What do you think I need help with?” John looks down at Elizabeth in his hands, who has somehow turned herself upside-down. Her legs are cycling around so fast that John is in danger of getting kicked in the face. “She doesn't want a bath.”

“I can see that. Here, I'll try and get her in.” Dave plucks Elizabeth out of his arms, righting her. She stills, momentarily enough so that Dave can plonk her down in her own baby holder. She begins to scream, but silences when Dave hands her a small squirty whale toy--her favourite.

“See, having a bath isn't that bad. You get all nice and clean.” Dave says, scooping up some of the water from the bath and pouring it gently over her. She looks at him, considering something, before squeezing her little whale toy. It squirts water right into Dave's face. She giggles at his flabbergasted expression. “Why do I even try?”

John looks over at him sympathetically from his position in front of James. “Oh baby, you know how she gets in the bath. Do you want to switch?”

“No, no I'll be fine. I'm an adult I can handle washing a child.” Dave looks at John before turning back to his daughter. She's holding her squirty whale toy in one hand, and attempting to eat a rubber ducky with the other. Dave looks back over at John and James, the latter with his eyes closed and enjoying it as John pours water over him. Dave looks back at Elizabeth, determinedly sucking on the rubber ducky like it would do any good. He should have taken John up on his offer.

Regardless, Dave does his best. Elizabeth has restarted her wailing from earlier and she's started flailing her limbs about the best she can, splashing water everywhere. 

“Elizabeth, please.” Dave tries.

Surprisingly, it works. She stops, staring at him with wide eyes. Dave takes the opportunity and pours another cupful of water over her. She blinks and shakes her head. Gently, Dave pushes back her hair out of eyes.

“Da!” She shouts, throwing down the rubber ducky into the water. It makes a splash, turning upside down. It bobs there, up and down.

“Oh yes, that's pretty cool.” Dave replies absentmindedly, squirting some baby shower gel into his hand. Taking care to be gentle, Dave gently lathers it over her body.

“Coo-Coo Da!” She shouts in reply, pointing at something in front of her. Dave ignores it, using the rare opportunity of Elizabeth's stillness to the best of his ability.

 

“Dave! Dave! Look!” John begins to tap furiously at Dave's upper arm.

“Hold on John I finally got her to sit still, you know how hard that is.” Dave says, rinsing off the bubbles with another cupful of bath water.

“No Dave, look.” The urgency in John's voice forces Dave to turn to look. James is not in his baby holder anymore. However John is not at all panicking about this, instead he's smiling softly and pointing to a dark shape in the water. That could only mean…

It's James’ first shift.

“What? Oh shit. I mean goodness.” Dave gasps and reaches his hand into the water towards James. James immediately swims towards Dave's hand and presses against his curled fingers.

“Look at him!” John coos, dipping his hand in the water. James is a tiny little fish of some sort, looking absolutely tiny in the shadow of Dave's hand.

“W-what do I do? Do I shift down beside him and help him catch his bearings? Do I wait it out? Should I film this?” Dave stammers out, looking at John with wide, nervous eyes.

“He seems...a little nervous. Maybe it would be best if you joined him.” John suggests slowly in order to calm Dave's panic. “I can film it if you want?”

“Do you know how to work the camera?” Dave asks.

“It can't be just hard, just press play and point it at something.” John rises from his stool, plucking Dave's video camera from the sink.

“John I find a lot of things wrong with that sentence but I'll let it slide.” Dave sighs. “Just...yeah...turn it on and aim it at James.”

In the blink of an eye, Dave shifts into the same fish as James (a bluegill now that John looks at him closely) and plops into the water. John does as Dave instructed and flicks the camera on, aiming it at James.

The water is warm and soapy, making it a little hard to breathe. His eyes sting a bit. Dave doesn't think this is a good first transformation for James at all. James immediately swims to Dave and presses against his side. He's scared, little form shaking.

Dave flashes back to his own first shift. That was...not fun. It was earlier than it should of been due to his father's...insistence...and it was terrifying. He doesn't remember it exactly, but when he tries hard enough he remembers pain, confusion and the sound of very angry yelling.

“Hey, it's okay sweetheart.” Dave nudges James gently up towards the surface in an effort to get him away from the bath water. His voice comes out alongside a stream of bubbles, quiet but enough for James to hear. “I know you're a little confused right now, and this water is a little murky. If you just shift back into a human you'll be alright.”

James looks at him with worried, confused eyes.

“Hey it's okay, shifting is easy. Just imagine what you want to be hard enough and you'll turn into it. Like this, see?” Dave shifts into a catfish almost lazily, swimming smoothly. James looks at him, blinks, and shifts into a much smaller catfish. “Yeah, that's it! Now try shifting back into a human.”

James looks at him once more and closes his eyes. There's a few beats of silence before he's back to his normal human form. Dave immediately shifts into his human form and grabs James, holding him high up into the air.

Out of the water, the world is a lot different. For one, Elizabeth is wailing her head off. Second, John is panicking, camera off and back on the sink as he tries to comfort Elizabeth. And third, Dave is absolutely soaked through, shirt and jeans dripping water into the bath.

“He's fine.” Dave says, placing a kiss on James’ forehead. James is now fast asleep in Dave's arms, tired from his ordeal. “A little exhausted but he's fine now.”

Dave steps out of the bathtub, dripping all over the floor.

“Dave, the floor.” John says, looking down at the steadily growing puddle on the floor.

“I'll clean it up, promise. What did you get on film?”

“Of course you're more worried about the film than the fact that you're sopping wet.” John smiles exasperatedly, putting a hand on his hip and shaking his head. “Don't worry, I captured the majority of it. I just stopped filming because it...it felt a bit too personal to show up in a big fancy 21st birthday dinner, y’know?”

“I understand.” Dave carries James over to the two pre-prepared towels and gently lays him down on one. Taking care not to wake him, Dave dries him off.

John, holding a now-quiet Elizabeth, sets her down on the towel beside James. John works quickly and efficiently in drying her, but still with a large degree of gentleness and care.

Once both twins are dry, John and Dave start getting them into their pyjamas. James slips into his easily, compliant when asleep. Elizabeth is a lot harder the active little squirt, and Dave has to pitch in in order to get her inside her pyjamas.

“Let's go put them to bed.” Dave says, standing up.

John holds up a hand to stop him. “No, Dave change out of those wet clothes and dry off. I'll bring you your pyjamas after I put them to bed.” John scoops up both twins so that one rests on each arm.

“John that's not fair to you--”

John cuts Dave off before he can finish with a soft kiss on the lips. “I can handle it, but I know for a fact you can't handle it if you get a cold. Get changed.”

“Okay…” Dave sighs.

“Good. Love you.” John plants another kiss on Dave's lips before turning on his heel and leaving the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

 

Dave slowly peels his wet clothes off him. His skinny jeans, already tight enough when dry, cling to his legs almost desperately. His shirt comes off easier, and soon all his clothes are lying in a puddle in the sink.

Dave grabs his towel and wraps it around his shoulders. He sits down on the toilet, staring glumly at the slightly murky bath water.

James’ first shift has brought all Dave's paranoia about failing him back. His childhood wasn't...the best, and Dave doesn't think he ever learnt to shift properly. He learnt to shift out of fear and necessity. How can he pass that onto his son? 

Dave is of course, relieved that James can shift so well. Two shifts on his first try, and so easily executed--James is a natural. That doesn't exactly help.

Despite shifting all the time, Dave isn't exactly the best shifter. Beside his human form and his crow form, Dave doesn't really shift into anything else. Of course there's the rare occasion of something else like earlier in the bathtub, but he generally stays in the three forms. There is a high likelihood that James will surpass him in shifting abilities fairly soon.

Dave lets out a heavy sigh. Over the years he's forced away the tiredness until he almost never feels it, but the strain of shifting three times in a row and still being shifted is taking a toll on him. Rubbing his eyes, Dave slips back into his true form.

God he's ugly. There's a reason he promised himself he's never showing this form to the twins. Who would proudly say that their father looks like this? Besides, the twins would probably burst into tears at the sight of him.

At that thought, Dave tears up, just a little.

 

“Hey. How you doing in here?” John pokes his head into the bathroom, a concerned look on his face.

“Wha-oh yeah I'm fine.” Dave startles, ears pricking up at John's entrance. He wipes furiously at his eyes.

John steps inside, closing the door behind him. He's holding Dave's pyjamas over his arm--baggy black sweatpants and a purple Sailor Moon shirt. “You all dry?”

“No.” Dave replies sullenly, turning his head slightly to side eye John.

John just laughs, draping Dave's pyjamas over the towel rail before bustling over to where Dave's wet clothes are lying. He plucks them out of the sink and places them on the edge of the bathtub. He leans forward and pulls the plug off the drain. The water rushes towards the drain with an excited vigor, falling down the drain with loud gurgles. John then begins to wring out Dave's clothes in the bathtub, first the shirt and then his jeans. “You should probably rub the towel on your body, that's generally how you should dry yourself.”

“Hey, I don't need your sarcasm right now.” Dave pulls his towel further up his body, wings tucked in.

“Proud of James?” John smiles. “I sure am. I don't exactly know the entirety of what was going on in that bathtub, but I'm still proud of him.” 

“Yeah, but I'm worried too.” Dave pauses, looking down at the puddle on the floor.

“Why?” John puts down Dave's wet t-shirt and stands, moving closer to Dave.

“You know me I'm a paranoid fuck.” Dave lets out a snort, eyes downcast. “But yeah, I'm worried about not being a good enough teacher.”

“Oh Davey, you'll be brilliant.” John smiles, reaching forward to place a hand on Dave's head. Softly he strokes Dave's head, gently rubbing Dave's ears. “Just do what you did in the bath and you'll be perfect.”

“John I don't think it works like that.” Dave cracks a smile, a soft purr beginning to rumble from his chest at John's touch.

“Dave, you've got to stop putting yourself down like this. You'll be a brilliant teacher for James. He's your son and you love him, it'll all work out in the end.” John smiles at Dave, wide and reassuring.

Dave sighs, rising to his feet. John's hand disappears from the top of his head, but Dave makes up for this by tucking John in under his chin.

“Ugh, gross no. You're still wet.” John laughs, sound vibrating against Dave's chest.

“Love you.” Dave teases in reply, running a hand through John's hair. “I can't promise that I'll be the best teacher for James, but I'll do my best.”

“Of course you will! You'll be brilliant--that's my Dave.” John replies. Dave can feel his smile wide against his chest.

“You're a sap.”

“Says you Mr Cameraman.” John laughs, gently parting from Dave's embrace. “Now dry off and get changed. I don't want you getting a cold now.”

Dave lets out his most long-suffering and loudest sigh yet. “Fine.”

“Good.” John leans up on his tiptoes and kisses him on the cheek before turning back to the clothes. John continues squeezing Dave's clothing until they're no longer dripping wet, but damp.

Dave  _ is _ proud of James, utterly and truly. Despite his fears John's words have encouraged him to keep going. He's going to do his best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hoped you enjoyed it! Let me know what you thought in the comments below.  
> Also if anyone could tell me how to get photos from my phones camera roll into the fic that would be great bc i might draw some things?


	53. 31 Years Old. First Steps.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elizabeth and James take their first steps.

“And then the hare said to himself, ‘well the tortoise is slow, so it can't hurt to take a little nap by the side of the road.’” John narrates to his children, smile on his face as he points out the pictures. James is leaning against his left side, head practically on John's lap as his gaze drifts across the page. Elizabeth is sitting at John's right side, sitting up on her own. The couch, while old and a little stained, is comfortable for them to sit on.

John is off maternity leave as the twins are now nine months old. He's taking it slowly, with only three 4 hour shifts a week. It'll ramp up to four shifts a week next month and so on until John is back to his regular schedule. It's nice to be back at work and out of the house. He does miss Elizabeth and James when he's at work, but he has plenty of time with them when he's not working. He spends as much of that time as he can with them; playing and reading to them.

Dave is seated across the room, sitting on the floor as he types away at his script on his laptop. Dave claims that sitting on the floor helps him concentrate for some reason? John doesn't get it, but he guesses that's art, huh?

“And so the hare settled by the side of the racetrack and fell fast asleep. But as the hare was sleeping, the tortoise, plodding along so slowly, overtook the hare!”

“Tor-se!” Elizabeth cries triumphantly.

“Yes Elizabeth, tortoise!” John coos back, just as triumphant as his daughter.

James stares intently at the illustration of the tortoise on the page before he shifts into one. He looks up at John, as if for approval.

“Yes James, you're a tortoise! And a very cute one at that.” John smiles. James lights up at John's approval.

John pats James’ head absentmindedly as he continues to read. ”The hare woke up much later than he intended to find that the tortoise had won the race.”

The Hare and the Tortoise is Elizabeth's favourite book. John and Dave aren't too sure why. Maybe it's the way John does the voices, or the way Dave sometimes cycles her feet around in a running motion while John reads it. Either way, she adores it.

James shifts back into a human and rests his head against John's lower stomach, pleased smile on his face. He doesn't particularly care what book is read during storytime, or who reads it to him, as long as he gets attention.

Elizabeth reaches up and lays both her hands on John's forearm, a look of concentration on her face.

“What is it sweetie?” John asks, focusing on her. She frowns harder. Slowly, using John's arms as a support, she pulls herself upwards.

“Dah!” She cries triumphantly. She's a little unsteady and unsure on her feet, but she looks incredibly satisfied with herself.

“Dave look! Elizabeth's standing up!” John calls over to his boyfriend.

Dave's head snaps up from his laptop and he shoves it aside to scramble to his feet. “I-I’ll grab the video camera!”

Dave dashes out of the living room. John can hear his footsteps retreat into their shared bedroom before dashing back into the living room. Dave reappears, pointing the already-on camera at Elizabeth.

“Do you want to try walking to your papa?” John asks.

Elizabeth blinks, turning to look at Dave. Letting go of John's arm, she takes her first step towards Dave. She makes it a few steps before she trips over the gap in the couch cushion, falling flat on her face.

“Elizabeth!” John cries, immediately scooping her up and righting her. She blinks again, but she looks relatively unharmed. John sighs in relief. “How about we move this to the even surface of the floor?”

John maneuvers himself and Elizabeth off the couch and onto the floor. Still holding her, he makes sure to settle James into a comfortable position, softly kissing the top of his head.

Holding Elizabeth's hands to support her as she stands, Elizabeth takes her first steps towards Dave. The steps are small, slow and shaky, but she is determined.

Dave lays down the camera and kneels down, holding his arms out for Elizabeth. She toddles over, placing one foot in front of the other until she is standing in front of Dave.

“Pa!” She cries, utterly triumphant.

“Yes!” Dave scoops her up into the air, swinging her around in a circle. “You did it!”

“She's going to wreck even more havoc now.” John laughs, rising to his feet.

“She truly is our daughter.” Dave agrees, spinning around in a lazy circle as he holds her up in the air. She's giggling, hands reaching down for Dave and little fingers wiggling.

“She looks exactly like you when you're trying to explain something to me, but you keep laughing halfway through your sentences because you find it so funny and I don't know what you're saying.” John snickers, a soft, faraway look in his eyes.

“That's not a very good comparison.“ Dave draws Elizabeth close to his chest, offended.

“I'm joking. She has your laugh.” John pats Dave on the arm comfortingly.

“I guess that's something.” Dave sniffs. He lifts Elizabeth back into the air, spinning her around. She giggles louder, especially when Dave starts making plane noises. “Nyooooom, Strider Airlines is taking off!”

After swinging her around for a little bit, Dave sets her down on the couch next to her brother. She turns to him, babbling happily. He looks at her silently, an unreadable expression on his face.

John sits back down on the couch, sitting beside Elizabeth. Dave joins them moments later, sitting beside James.

“Oh I'm so proud of you Elizabeth, you're walking!” John smiles. Elizabeth looks up at him, then at her brother, before leaning back on the couch. “Oh...aren't you proud Dave?”

“Hell yeah, she's on her way to be a pro-athlete. I can't wait to watch her debut in the Olympics.” Dave grins. Elizabeth opens her eyes and smiles at him.

“Dave she's nine months old, she toddled a few feet with help.” John laughs. Elizabeth snaps her head around and glares up at him. “But maybe when she's older she could be an Olympic athlete.”

Elizabeth relaxes, smiling contentedly. Her little legs jiggle up and down as her top half remains still.

“Definitely.” Dave pats her on the head. “My little athlete.”

John just smiles softly, placing his hand on Dave's. Elizabeth is walking now, which is simultaneously exciting and terrifying. She's growing up so fast! Soon she'll be toddling around the house after him, her brother close behind.

Elizabeth flings out a leg, kicking off a shoe in the process. It flies across the room, hitting the TV with a thunk. It wobbles for a few heartstopping seconds before settling back down.

John holds back a sigh. He should probably re-babyproof the house, and soon.

 

☆☆☆

 

“Please lie down Elizabeth, it's time for bed.” John says, tone long-suffering and facial expression exhausted.

Instead of doing what he asked, she stares defiantly back at him, straightening her stance. Her fingers tighten around the bars of the cot.

Opposite John, Dave hides his laugh in James, nursing the boy in his arms. John shoots him a glare. Dave looks away, feigning innocence by rocking James back and forth.

“C’mon sweetie, you need sleep. You've had your bedtime story, you've been fed and had a bath. You've also got your stuffed toy and really soft blankets and your brother right beside you, so you should be nice and warm and safe.” John picks up Elizabeth's plush cat toy, placing it in front of her. She lets go of the bars of the cot in order to grab the small plush cat toy. She hugs it to her chest and toddles around in a circle to stare up at James.

“Yeah James you should probably sleep too.” Dave places a kiss on James’ head and places him into the cot. He blinks and looks around, before crawling over to Elizabeth.

“Jah.” Elizabeth's tone is insistent as she stares at her brother. He opens his mouth and closes it shut. “Jah!” Elizabeth tries again, tone much more insistent now.

James looks nervously from his sister to the bars of the cot. At another cry of ‘Jah’, James slowly, using the bars of the cot, rises to his feet. Elizabeth nods, joining him.

“Look Dave, he's finally standing!” John exclaims, pointing at his son with excitement.

“I can see that.” Dave grins, resting his arms on the rim of the cot and his chin on his arm.

At the sound of Dave’s voice, James turns around, hands still clenched to the bars. Dave reaches an arm out to James. Slowly, James reaches one hand out and grabs Dave’s hand, keeping the other fixed on the bars. 

“Come on James, come to papa.” Dave says, beckoning James with his other hand. James lets go of the bars of the crib and stumbles over to Dave.

“Oh…” John breathes out, happy grin on his face.

“Jah!” Elizabeth says again, but without any of the previous insistence and much more satisfaction. She plonks herself down on the mattress and looks up at her parents.

James, grinning triumphantly, lifts his hands off Dave's arm and stands on his own. He takes a few steps before he goes down. Luckily, Dave is there to catch him and set him down safely. James doesn't cry, he only blinks in surprise.

“Now they're both walking.” John smiles warmly, leaning against the cot and peering down at the both of them. “I'm so happy, I could just cry.”

“Oh don't worry John, I've beat you there.” John looks up and sees a few tears glistening on Dave's cheeks.

“You didn't cry like this for Elizabeth.” John raises an eyebrow.

“Yeah because that was only one of walking then and now it's both of them?” Dave wipes a few tears from his cheeks. “Also I forgot to film it.”

“Oh Dave…” John smiles sympathetically, his eyes warm with love. “You have plenty more time to film, like tomorrow morning. You can catch his next steps on film, okay?”

“Beh!” Elizabeth calls up to him, interrupting. She's staring up at John as she lies on the mattress with an intense, demanding look. Her arm is wrapped around her plush cat toy. It's clear what she wants.

“Oh, now you want sleep!” John laughs, pulling the blanket over Elizabeth. He tucks her in, making sure every part of her is covered. He even tucks in her toy.

“Yeah, you should sleep too.” Dave says. James needs no further instructions, happily crawling over to his side and lying next to his sister. Dave tucks him in, leaning down to place a kiss on his forehead, then Elizabeths. “Goodnight my little angels.”

John smiles warmly, rocking the cot gently. James immediately closes his eyes and falls asleep, as he tends to do. Elizabeth regards them both with a calculating gaze before closing her own eyes and drifting off to sleep. The rocking always gets them.

Dave moves around to John's side of the cot, laying an arm across John's shoulders. “They're growing up so fast.”

“I know…” John whispers tiredly, rubbing his eyes. “God Dave, we should probably get to bed. I have work in the morning and I need my beauty sleep.”

“No you don't John, you're beautiful enough as it is.” Dave replies in a whisper, tired grin on his face.

“Oh stop it you.” John laughs quietly. He ceases rocking the cot with a soft sigh. “Come on, I'm going to bed.”

John quietly slips away from Dave's hold, leaving the nursery quietly. His bare feet pad against the wooden floor as he disappears down the hall. Sparing one last look at the twins, Dave follows him, shutting the nursery door behind him. The apartment is silent as Dave slips back into his true form and heads into his and John's bedroom. John looks at him sleepily as he enters, halfway into bed.

Dave slides in next to him, stretching out on his wings as he lies on his side. Under the covers, John grabs one of his scaly clawed hands and holds it tight. John promptly falls asleep, mouth half open. That pillow is going to have a lot of drool on it in the morning.

Smiling tiredly, Dave closes his eyes. The warmth of his bed, the thoughts of his children walking and the sensation of John holding his hand lull him straight to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like what I'm churning out is kinda shit and nonsensical and predictable so I'm really sorry about that? I'm doing my best and hopefully the quality will increase in the next chapters??   
> It's kind of writings of my fankids being their wonderful selves from now on but they're the reason why this fic was made. How is everyone liking them so far? I know they're only babies now but I have written another fic about them that might give people more insight into their personalities? Please let me know what you think in the comments below! :)


	54. 31 Years Old. First Words.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elizabeth says her first word. John brings up his concerns about James.

“Here comes the aeroplane!” John says loudly, imitating aeroplane noises as he scoops a spoonful of the potato-and-carrot mash into Elizabeth's mouth. She accepts it with little fuss, which is a relief.

John hurriedly scoops as many spoonfuls of his own dinner into his mouth as he can before scooping up another blob of potato mash for Elizabeth.

“Good girl.” John smiles as she eats the spoonful without fuss. “It's yummy isn't it?”

“It really is.” Dave comments as he scrapes the other bowl of potato-and-carrot mash for James. “It's nothing fancy but it's nice comfort food.”

“Well it's got your papa’s seal of approval, but he'll eat literally anything so I don't know how much that guarantees.” John sighs to Elizabeth.

“You're not going to ask why I'm eating baby food?” Dave looks over at John, loaded spoon halfway to James’ mouth. James is waiting expectantly, mouth open.

“I've learnt not to question the weird stuff you do over the years.” John sighs, smiling softly.

“Oh. Well. Okay?” Dave blinks. James impatiently reaches for the spoon, making grabby motions with his hands. Dave snaps out of whatever thought process he's found himself in and feeds James the spoonful of mash.

John scrapes the bowl in his hands with the spoon until there's nothing else he can get out. He feeds it to Elizabeth, smiling at her happy, contented noises.

“If you must know, it's because James is a fussy eater and won't touch anything unless I eat it first.” Dave speaks out, wiping away the mash on James’ face.

“You did say you thought it was comfort food.” John hums in return, collecting both bowls and spoons and, getting up off his stool, placing them in the kitchen sink.

“It's...got that kind of feel to it, y’know? Like Friday night pizza or when we visit your Dad and he's cooked up a big pot of chicken pho.” Dave gets a misty, far away look in his eyes.

“Uh huh.” John swings open the fridge door, peering inside. He grabs a medium sized container filled with mashed peaches and a small tub of yogurt--the twins desert. As John sets it up, he narrates what he's doing to the twins. “You're going to have peaches and yogurt for dessert! I'm putting it in little bowls for the both of you--in your dinosaur bowl James, and your bumblebee bowl Elizabeth--with a little dollop of yogurt. It's going to be  _ very _ yummy.”

“Peaches!” A small voice cries out.

“Yes Elizabeth, peaches.” John nods absentmindedly before the realization of what just happened dawns on him. “Oh my God she said her first word!!!”

“Peaches!” Elizabeth cries out again, making grabby grabby motions with her fist. “Peaches!”

“You want peaches? Here we go, open wide.” Dave leans across the table, grabbing the spoon from John's hand and scooping up a blob of peach mash. He scoops it into Elizabeth's mouth, who makes a happy little cooing noise.

“Ohhh…my baby’s talking.” John breaks off into a wide happy smile. He ruffles her hair gently. “You like peaches do you?”

Elizabeth nods her head up and down, reaching for the bowl.

“Hold on, hold on.” Dave frantically scoops up a spoonful of peach mash and holds it out to her. She eagerly accepts it.

“Peaches!” Elizabeth shrieks again.

“James, what do you have to say on the matter? Come on, your sisters beating you.” John looks over at James, a teasing smile on his face.

James opens his mouth, but nothing comes out. He blinks.

John frowns. “Come on sweetie, it's okay. I'm only joking.”

James opens his mouth once more and snaps it shut. He shakes his head slightly.

“Dave, I'm worried about James.” John says, looking at his now slightly distressed looking son.

“He's fine John, you can feed him if you're that worried.” Dave replies.

John nudges him on the arm, directing his attention towards James. “That's not it Dave. Elizabeth's a little early in saying her first word, but she's been happily babbling away to us all her life. That's normal baby behavior--they babble and copy adults to learn how to talk. That's fine, that's healthy. My problem is with James. I don't think...I don't think I've ever heard James make even a sound.”

“He's probably just a late bloomer. Don't worry about it.” Dave dismisses John's concerns easily.

“Are you sure?” John stares harder at James. James looks back at him, face immediately brightening at the sight of him. “I'm worried about him. He could have some sort of speech impediment or something.”

“I'm sure it's fine.” Dave scoops up another spoonful of peaches. “He's a happy, healthy boy. He's fine.”

“Alright.” John sighs, maneuvering himself around the table to begin feeding James his desert. James isn't as enthusiastic about peaches as Elizabeth, but still happily eats them.

“Look, if you're that worried, in a few months time, if he still hasn't made any noise, we'll take him to the doctor to get checked up on.” Dave suggests. “But I'm sure everything's fine.”

“Alright, that's a good idea. We'll do that.” John manages a smile. However, as he watches James eat his food, John still gets the feeling that something is wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed, as always :)


	55. 31 Years Old. First Birthday.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elizabeth and James have their first birthday party in an aquarium!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update, lmao. But it's a pretty big chapter to make up for it, so, as always, enjoy

“What time did you put on the invite again?” John asks Dave, checking his watch for the millionth time.

“2 o’clock.” Dave responds, rocking James and Elizabeth's pram back and forth gently. “Checking your watch constantly isn't going to make them come faster.”

“I know.” John looks around the busy aquarium, packed with people. He leans back against a large glass fish tank, folding his arms to his chest anxiously. “But what if they can't see us? We're pretty hidden away here.”

“It's chill John, I tied balloons to the pram.” Dave yanks on a bright blue one for emphasis. “It's like Pixar's Up on this shit. There's no way they'll miss us.”

John smiles, poking at one of the balloons. “Yeah, I guess.”

“Speak of the devil, I can see Dirk now.” Dave points into the crowd and John follows his finger. Dirk is standing awkwardly in line, much taller than everyone else is the queue. He's wearing a pair of ripped jeans and a t-shirt, arms folded to his chest for warmth. Early February means it's pretty cold out, John doesn't know why he's wearing such cold clothing. “I'll go get him.”

Dave lets go of the pram and heads off towards his brother, weaving through the crowd as he goes. Dave sneaks up behind Dirk and places a hand on his shoulder. Dirk jumps in surprise, spinning around wildly. Dave laughs. Dirk frowns, but greets his brother regardless. John watches them converse, drawing his own jacket closer to himself. How is Dirk not an icicle by now?

“Dad!” Elizabeth pipes up from the pram. John feels his heart swell with pride as he leans down to answer her. She, like her brother, is laying under a purple croqueted blanket knitted by Rose. A small red beanie with a black fluffy bobble on top is perched upon her dark curls.

“What is it sweetie?” John asks. Elizabeth pulls out a mittened hand and points it at the ground. “You want to get out?”

Elizabeth nods. John scoops her up and places her on the ground, keeping hold of her hand. She toddles over to the fishtank behind the pram, pressing her face against the glass. Her pink parka and black, star-patterned pants are illuminated blue by the soft light of the tank.

“Hey John, how's it hanging?” Dirk says.

John turns to face both of the brothers, a pleasant smile on his face. “Oh I'm good. Excited for Elizabeth and James first birthday party!”

“Oh yeah, I brought presents.” Dirk holds out a messily wrapped box, a ribbon stuck to its surface. “Happy Birthday.”

“Thanks. I’ll put this in the pram to open later.” Dave takes the box from Dirk, placing it under the pram. “We're going to do presents and cake after we go around the aquarium.”

“Can they even like...eat cake?” Dirk squints at James in the pram, then at Elizabeth with her attention solely on the fishtank.

“In small quantities.” John answers, scooping up Elizabeth and cradling her in his arms. John leans against the fish tank, which allows her a better view of the fish in the tank. She lets out a coo of surprise when a shark swims past her. “But it's their birthday; it's a treat.”

 

“Hey guys!” A shrill yet excited voice calls out. Jade is running up to them, Rose and Kanaya in tow. All three are significantly more rugged up than Dirk; with Rose in a leather jacket, Jade in a knit sweater and Kanaya with a denim jacket. They each sport a scarf, no doubt hand knitted by Rose.

“Hey Jade!” John laughs, greeting her with a one-armed hug.

“Hey John! Hey Dave! Hi Dirk!” Jade says quickly before turning her attention to Elizabeth in John's arms. “Happy Birthday Elizabeth!” Jade steps back, peering into the pram. “And you too James! You're both one now! Oh this is so exciting!”

“You seem more excited than John and Dave.” Rose smirks, a gift bag hanging off her arm. She hands it to Dave, who takes it a little warily. “Here's our present by the way. Happy Birthday to the little ones.”

“Hello to you too Rose.” Dave says, placing the gift bag next to Dirks box.

“Hello David.” Rose says, greeting him politely. “So lovely to see you again.”

“That's better.” Dave says, more so to himself than to anyone else.

“Hello.” Kanaya says politely, fiddling with the fringe of her green scarf.

“I brought custom-made party hats.” Jade announces, pulling out a stack of very brightly coloured and glittery party hats. Two are significantly smaller and more glittery than the others--with the words ‘happy birthday’ plastered on. Jade hands those two to Dave alongside a larger adult one, before handing one each to the entire group. A party hat already sits on top of her head, fluorescent yellow with white and pink spots.

“I don't know how this is going to fit over Elizabeth's beanie.” John begrudgingly puts on his party hat (lime green with silver glitter and red and blue spots), taking one of the small ones from Dave.

“Just put it on top! She can double hat it.” Jade replies casually. “She'll be the height of fashion.”

“Of course, how could I not think of that.” John replies dryly, nevertheless doing what Jade instructs. Elizabeth looks pretty funny double hatted, her face squished up and her eyes darting around confusedly.

“I'll hat up James.” Dave leans into the pram, placing the party hat on his son's head. James blinks, reaching a single hand up to the hat. “Don't you look so handsome.” Dave coos. James breaks into a smile.

 

“Hello everybody, sorry if I'm a little late.” Dad walks up, apologetic expression on his face and a neatly wrapped box in his hand. He's dressed in his usual business casual attire--except for the giant patterned scarf around his neck.

“Ah! Dad! You scared me!” John startles before breaking out into a grin, greeting his father with a tight, one-armed hug. “Hi.”

“Hello sweetheart.” Dad returns the hug, minding Elizabeth and patting his sons back. Dad then breaks away, looking up at his son. John's face has changed remarkably over the past few months, it's almost unbelievable. He is very undeniably proud of his son. “Oh, I see you've grown some stubble.”

“Oh, yeah. I kind of keep forgetting to shave.” John self-consciously brings up a hand to his cheek, covered in short black hairs. “It doesn't look bad, does it?”

“You look nice sweetheart, don't worry about it.” Dad smiles.

“Oh, thanks.”

“Now to the reason why we're all here--Happy Birthday Elizabeth!” Dad smiles again, reaching forward to pat Elizabeth lightly on the head. “Now where's your brother, I have to wish him a happy birthday as well.”

“He's in the pram.” Dave answers. “You wanna hold him?”

“Yes please! Hmmm, hold on, I still have the birthday box. Let's do a trade.” Dad says, holding out the box to Dave. They awkwardly shuffle around each other before James is deposited into Dad’s arms. Dave also dumps one of the party hats into Dad's arms, giving him a wink before returning to his previous spot by the now empty pram. Dave places the present beside the other presents in the pram. Dad boops a finger against James’ nose, who blinks in shock.

John begins to feel worried about Jane's whereabouts. Without bringing Dad along, she's usually quite punctual, arriving early even. John pulls out his phone, checking the screen. ‘2:10pm’ the clock reads. There's a new text message from Jane, labelled four minutes ago. ‘ _ I'm sorry, we're going to be a little late! Roxy got us a little lost. We'll be there in five minutes.’ _

‘ _ that's fine, see you soon! _ ’ John texts back before shoving his phone back in his pocket.

“Jane says she'll be here in a little bit.” John announces.

“Then we'll all head into the aquarium for real. And before you ask--don't worry about paying. I've already done that.” Dave wheels the pram subtly backwards so that he's standing next to John.

“Why’d you choose an aquarium for a first birthday party location?” Dirk asks, looking around. “I mean this doesn't exactly strike me as the first place to hold a birthday party.”

“Well we didn't want to hold it at home--it's getting really cramped as of late--but it's far too cold out. So we decided to take them somewhere indoors, but still fun.” John answers. He gives Dave a smile.

“So you chose an aquarium?” Dirk raises an eyebrow.

“Yeah, because aquariums are pretty cool. All those fish and stuff. It's educational for the minds we're trying to teach and nurture.” Dave answers, getting a little worked up. John places a hand on his shoulder.

“I see James has dressed for the occasion.” Kanaya points out James’ shark pants--navy with light blue sharks stretched down the sides.

“Yes! Aren't they adorable?” John coos, free hand playing gently with James’ foot. “When I saw them, I just had to buy them. There was a matching jumper too, but he's not wearing that one today.”

“They're very cute.” Kanaya smiles.

“Hey! I see Jane!” Jade interrupts. She points her out in the crowd, looking a little stressed as she peers around. Standing on her tippy toes and waving like a madwoman, Jade calls her over.

“Oh God she's with my sister.” Rose holds up a hand over her face. That doesn't exactly stop Roxy from immediately spotting her.

“Rosie!” Roxy calls, scooping her sister up in a hug as soon as she's within range.

“Hello everyone. Again, I'm so sorry for our lateness.” Jane apologizes once more, greeting John with a quick hug. “We were on time until  _ someone _ suggested a shortcut that added on ten minutes to the trip instead of shaving off ten minutes like she led me to believe.”

“Hey, it usually does! There was just a traffic jam today.” Roxy releases Rose, heading over to John. “Hi everyone! And Happy Birthday to Elizabeth and James!”

“Hi Roxy.” John answers, pleasant smile on his face. Elizabeth looks at her strangely. She really hasn't seen that much of Roxy, as Jane tends to visit alone. Regardless, Elizabeth lifts up her hand to wave in greeting. Roxy makes an incredibly high-pitched noise, clapping her hands together.

“Here.” Jane hands John two small boxes, neatly wrapped in pastel pink and blue respectively. “For the little ones.”

“Thank you.” John smiles, awkwardly bending down to put the boxes with the rest of the presents. “We should probably head properly inside the aquarium. Got to start this party thing.”

“You excited to see some little fishies?” Dave asks, poking Elizabeth's cheek. She just looks at him. But, over in Dad's arms, James claps his hands together excitedly.

 

As a group, they slowly make their way over to the main entrance to the aquarium, chatting amongst themselves. The front area of the aquarium is quite large, with high ceilings and a large fish tank that encompasses the wall of the room. They move past the reception desk into the depths of the aquarium, plastic floor transferring into fish patterned carpet under their feet.

It leads into a long hallway, with a low, blue light being emitted from the fish tanks. Elizabeth lets out a little shout and John hefts her up to have a look into the nearest tank, which holds a blue-ringed octopus.

“So what exactly are we doing? Are we taking a tour at all or are we just going to wander around?” Rose asks, idly thumbing a pair of rings on her finger as she gazes at the same tank Elizabeth is fixated on.

“We're just wandering around.” Dave answers, leaning against the pram. “We can all like, separate and have a look around individually before we meet up in the restaurant at the end.”

“Our plan is really just to wander through the aquarium and have a nice chat and look at the fish.” John agrees, a smile on his face as he watches his daughter, cheeks and hands pressed against the glass. The octopus inside is playing with a soccer ball, wrapping its tentacles around it and rolling it around. Elizabeth's eyes track the ball with a wide curiosity. John's glad to see that, the attentiveness in her eyes, but he sometimes can't but wonder if she can see properly. Given his own myopia and Dave's light-sensitive eyes caused by albinism, it's not very likely either of his children have 20/20 vision. It's something that can be diagnosed a little later however, he should just focus on the now.

Slowly, with a little discussion, they disperse. Jade, Rose and Kanaya link up arms and head to the nearest tank, Rose and Kanaya engaging in casual banter while Jade stares up at the fish. Roxy and Jane move a little ways ahead to sit on a comfy looking bench in the middle of the hall. Roxy lays an arm over Jane's shoulder and pulls her close. Dave moves closer to John, leaning back against the wall, right next to the octopus tank. Dad, still holding James, moves to stand next to John. Dirk awkwardly moves a little way away, sitting on a bench.

“Papa!” Elizabeth coos, looking at Dave with a hand pressed against the glass and the other reaching for Dave.

“Yes! Oh that's so brilliant!” Dave presses his left hand against her own tiny hand, which is miniscule in comparison to Dave's giant hands. “What about you James? Do you want your first word to be papa because I'm obviously your favourite?”

James says nothing, only peering curiously at Dave. Both John and Dad frown.

“Has he not said his first word yet?” Dad asks. “Elizabeth already has a few tucked under her belt, shouldn't he be talking too?”

“He hasn't started yet.” John looks at his son, whose eyes are currently transfixed on the octopus. John chooses his next words carefully, tone the equivalent of treading on eggshells. “He hasn't said anything, not even baby babble. I'm a little worried honestly, but Dave says its fine.”

“Hmmmm.” Dad purses his lips together. “I believe you're the one who has the medical degree, not Dave.”

“It's fine Dad!” John laughs nervously. “He’ll probably say his first word soon. Just give him time. Babies have different stages of development. He most likely is a slower developer than his sister and I'm just being paranoid.”

“Hmmm.” Dad hums again, but his tone is far less stressed this time.

“Do you want to see more fishies?” John asks Elizabeth, turning her towards the rest of the aquarium.

“John an octopus isn't a fish, how dare you teach our daughter this misinformation.” Dave says, tone half teasing and half serious. “It is a crustacean. I’ve done my research.”

“You know what I mean Dave.” John sighs. Elizabeth giggles, leaning back to stare up at John. Her hand reaches up, curling itself around the string of John's hoodie. “Yeah, let's go look at more fish.”

John steps away from the octopus tank, placing Elizabeth back in the pram. As John tucks the blanket around her, she waves up at the octopus. It stares back, before slowly lifting a tentacle in a wave.

“I'll put James down in the pram with his sister.” Dad announces, pressing a kiss to James' forehead before placing him in the pram beside his sister. James beams up at his grandfather, letting out little huffs of air in excitement as he wiggles his legs around.

Dave pushes the pram forward on to the next tank, over to where Rose, Jade and Kanaya are standing. John falls beside him, placing a hand around the handle of the pram. Dad follows behind at a leisurely pace, face content.

Neither Rose, Jade or Kanaya seem to have noticed their presence, too absorbed in conversation. John is just concocting a plan to jump up behind them to scare them, before he hears what they're discussing.

“I think having the wedding in late May will be nice. I've looked up the weather patterns for the next few months and I really think the 30th would be a good day. It may be a little soon but the flowers then are so pretty! All really nice spring colours for the wedding. And it will be pleasantly warm then too, so we don't have to rug up.” Jade is saying, all the while fiddling with a ring on her finger.

“Yes, that does sound nice. It does get quiet cold in this climate and I would prefer not to have to wear a jacket over my wedding dress.” Kanaya agrees, a little shudder running up and down her spine as she imagines it.

“I'm wearing a suit so that won't be a problem.” Rose has an air of smugness in her voice that is often present there when Rose points out something that everyone else has seemingly forgotten.

“You're getting married?” John asks. All three women turn around, a mixture of shock and guilt on their faces.

“Ah! I'm sorry! You weren't supposed to hear that!” Jade balks, embarrassed.

“What? Why not?” John asks, incredibly confused. They've been best friends for over twenty years and they don't want to tell him about their wedding? Why not?

“Because it is your children's birthday party. We don't want to be those people who do something like that--take away yours and theirs special moment for our own benefit.” Rose replies, an awkward look on her face.

“Like those people who propose at weddings.” Jade adds, looking truly apologetic.

“But this isn't a wedding!” John protests. “Why...why do you think we'd be mad? I'm so happy for you guys! When is it?”

“Fu-Frick yeah man, when is it?” Dave adds on. Dad nods alongside

“Well…” Jade begins, looking at the two girls at her side.

“...late May. Specifically on the 30th of May.” Rose finishes off for Jade. “We were going to mail you an invitation in the mail, but you found out by eavesdropping before we could send it.”

“Oh! I can't wait!” John claps his hands together in excitement. “I'm so happy for you!”

“Congratulations.” Dad nods, smiling wistfully. There is a faraway look in his eyes that makes it look like he's far away from the current situation.

“So a spring wedding, huh? What's the colour scheme?” Dave grins cheekily. “Goth? Farm hick? Classy chic?”

“Pastels.” Kanaya states calmly. “So you will have to wear a pastel suit. The dress code is very strict.”

“Ah, just the colour scheme to match my pale skin.” Dave lets out a laugh. “I can't exactly picture Rose in a pastel suit. She wears way too much black.”

“It's called pastel goth for your information.” Rose frowns, placing her hand on her hips. “And like you know anything about fashion.”

“I don't know anything about fashion, but that won't stop me from putting in my input.” Dave mimics Rose, mockingly exaggerating her in his movements.

John laughs affectionately, lightly bumping his side against Dave's. “Not knowing anything in general doesn't stop you from putting in your input.”

“Hey!” Dave automatically protests. He then considers John's words for a second, shrugging and agreeing. “Yeah.”

“Well I can tell you know I'm already impatiently waiting for the invitation in the mail.” John says, signs of laughter still on his face.

“And you shall receive one, with patience.” Rose replies with a wink.

“How about you guys? We didn't get a chance to properly ask earlier.” Jade asks, happy grin on her face. “I mean, apart from the little ones birthdays.”

“Oh nothing much really.” John and Dave exchange glances. “We're looking to buy a bigger house since our current flat is getting too small for the growing twins. We haven't found anything yet, but we're looking.”

“I have a movie coming out on July 15th.” Dave adds. “It's the last installment of the Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff franchise--unless there's enough of a push from the fans for a next installment.”

“I don't believe there would be.” Rose quips

“You'd be surprised Rose.” Dave nods thoughtfully. “Very surprised.”

“I'll have to take your word for it.” Rose grimaces.

“How are the little ones faring? Are they cold?” Kanaya asks, bending down level with the pram. John joins her, peering inside the pram.

James is fast asleep, peaceful look on his face as he clutches a soft dinosaur toy. Elizabeth is wide awake, and she lets out a big beaming smile when she sees John.

“Nope, they're just sleeping. Well, James is. Elizabeth is an active little squirt.” John smiles, gently brushing James’ hair. Elizabeth lets out a piercing giggle which wakes James from sleep.

Dave leans over the pram and stares at the two of them. “Wake up James, you got more fishies to see.”

James blinks up at him sleepily.

“Yes!” John agrees, pushing himself upwards. “We do. There's a whole bunch of fishies to see! Let's go see the sharks, huh?”

“You don't mind if we stay here do you? I think I've become emotionally attached to this nemo fish.” Jade asks. The excuse to talk privately over wedding plans is a little see through, but John doesn't mind. As long as he's someone's best man. “We'll catch you guys up later.”

“Of course we don't mind! Have fun!” John smiles, rejoining Dave's side at the pram. John hears a faint ‘they're called clownfish Jade’ from Rose as they leave, and represses a snicker.

 

They push the pram onwards, on towards the next tank. The fish in the tanks swim about lazily. Some are brightly coloured or nicely patterned. Some are big, some are small. Some have quite sharp teeth and others have none.

John recounts them all to Elizabeth and James, describing them all with a soft tone of voice. Dave pushes the pram slowly, taking plenty of time to stand in front of each tank. Dad follows them, engaging them in conversation. It's nice...peaceful.

The aquarium is a long hall-like room, which leads to a long glass hallway which in turn leads to the restaurant. There are further tanks deeper into the aquarium, but they're starting to feel a little hungry.

They pause at the entrance to the tunnel, simultaneously turning back to the rest of the group.

Jade, Rose and Kanaya are a few tanks closer from their previous position, still deep in conversation with their arms linked. Dirk appears to be in an intense staring contest with an octopus. Jane is sitting on a bench looking up at Roxy, while Roxy seems to be reenacting some sort of scene.

“Come on guys! Lunch break!” John calls.

Somehow, as spread out as they are, everyone hears him. John feels a little bit like a sheep herder at the end of a long day-calling his flock. That's stupid.

Nevertheless, everyone moves towards them at their own pace. Everyone gathers under the mouth of the tunnel, chatting amongst themselves.

As a group, they walk down the tunnel.

It's a glass tunnel where those inside can watch the fish swim by. This particular tank has quite a large amount of fish in it, all darting around in coral covered rocks.

John bends down to the pram with the plan of picking up both the twins and showing them. He comes to a halt however, when he notices James is asleep. Again.

“Dad!” Elizabeth cries, reaching a hand towards him.

“Oh, you want to see the fishies, huh?” John picks Elizabeth out of the pram, holding her up to the ceiling. “Bit too boring for your brother huh?”

Elizabeth nods, giving John a wide smile.

“I don't get how he can sleep all the time, he's sleeping solid through the night and the day now too apparently.” Dave smirks, leaning a hand down to place on James’ head.

“Oh let him sleep, he'll need to eat in a little while anyway. Let him sleep until then.” John says, attention focussed on bobbing Elizabeth up and down in the air as she giggles madly.

“It's natural for babies to sleep all the time.” Dad agrees. “I mean when you were his age John, all you did was sleep.”

“Nothing much has changed then.” John sighs, cracking a grin.

“Me too.” Dave sighs as well, expression sullen. “I need that.”

“Dave, you're not making any sense.” John smiles affectionately, looking at him.

“Yeah.” Dave nods.

“Oh, you're hungry, right.” John laughs. Elizabeth laughs too, the tassel on top of her party hat swishing back and forth with the movement of her head. “We’d best hurry up then so you can have some food.”

“Food sounds good, what's on the menu?” Roxy asks, trotting along to match John's increased speed.

“Whatever's on the restaurant menu.” John replies. Dave lets out a grunt of agreeance beside him.

Roxy falls back beside Jane, picking up her hand. Her eyes glance upwards, following a stingray as it lazily floats over the tunnel. Roxy turns to Jane with a grin on her face. “Wouldn't it be fucked up if the restaurant served fish?”

“It would fit the theme.” Jane agrees, nodding her head. “Although it would be very messed up for young children.”

John walks a little way ahead from the group, pointing out every little fish that darts by to Elizabeth. She gives a little coo of delight at each one, unaffected by the hungry mood of her party. He pauses in front of a stingray, pressed against the glass. John leans forward so that Elizabeth can press her hand against it. It looks pretty dumb--with beady black eyes and a triangle-like mouth, but John knows these things can kill. He'd be worried for his daughter's safety if it weren't for the glass separating them. John guesses at her age, right now, a lot of things could kill her. Babies are fragile little things, and the world outside is very dangerous. John just prays he's strong enough to protect them from it.

They're one now. Time has gone by so fast, it's hard to believe that it was in fact last year that John gave birth. Sometimes, his body still aches like it was yesterday.

“Come on John, I'm hungry.” Dave calls back and John realises that he's been staring at the stingray for so long, everyone is already in the restaurant and Dave is waiting for him at the mouth of the tunnel, pramless.

“Coming!” John pulls Elizabeth away from the stingray and hurries back over to Dave. Dave takes her from John's arms into his own, cradling her. “Sorry, I kinda zoned out.”

“What were you thinking about? You were staring pretty hard at that stingray. What wisdom does it have to grant us lesser beings?” Dave asks, waving his fingers playfully in front of Elizabeth's face. She looks both confused and offended by the intrusion.

“Oh nothing really, I was just thinking.” John laughs, beginning to make his way to where the others have already seated themselves. James is getting fawned over in the pram, everyone leaning inside to peer at and coddle him. “They're one now. They're growing up so fast, and I'm so undeniably proud of them.” 

“Hey I'm proud of  _ you _ .” Dave turns the conversation on its head. “You were the one that squeezed them out after all. All I did was panic and get in the doctor's way and cry a bit. They're  _ your _ little creations. Everyone is here to celebrate them, but also what you did to make them.”

“Come on you big sap.” John laughs, laying a hand across Dave's shoulders. “Let's join them.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyway so James' shark pants are real pants that we sell where I work and I love them so much??? Like they're for little kids but if they were in a bigger size (adults) nothing could stop me from buying them.


	56. 31 Years Old. Moving House...Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave go house hunting and find the perfect house to raise their little family in.

“This property, as you can see, is single storied, and includes an attic.” The realtor explains, long blonde ponytail catching the sunlight as her head moves. Her name badge also glints in the sun, shiny metal surface reading ‘Alice Barnett’.

“Oh that's...fun.” John's eyes take in the sight of the timber house standing in front of them.

The house itself is quite big, which is good for the twins. The timber boards of the house are painted a nice olive green, giving it a homey sort of feel. The garden looks nice too--although John's never really been one for gardening, he can see himself tending to the empty garden beds around the yard. The front porch spans the front side of the house, large windows looking out into the street.

“An attics great, the perfect place to store all the shit we don't need.” Dave agrees, nodding his head.

“There are three bedrooms, the master bedroom has an ensuite bathroom. One bathroom, one kitchen, one dining  room and one lounge room. It has also got a relatively large garden, which I'm sure you've found is becoming rarer these days.” Alice continues on, gesturing towards the house. “If you'd like to follow me, I'll lead you inside for the tour.”

They follow Alice up to the porch, standing to the side as Alice pulls the keys out of her pocket and slides it into the lock.

“It's a nice neighbourhood.” John comments, looking down the street at the picturesque looking houses, all neat and orderly in a row.

“Oh yes, it's quite nice. Lovely neighbours too. The sort that'll drop by with food and lend you sugar in the blink of an eye.” Alice says, unlocking the door.

The door swings open with a soft creak, revealing a bare corridor. The walls are painted impossibly white, as if been scrubbed clean moments prior.

Alice steps inside, both John and Dave following her in. Three doors lead into different rooms; one leading further into the house and the other two into bedrooms, both opposite each other. John pokes his head into the one on the left. Its walls are painted white and it's pretty spacious, although the room is empty which gives it the allusion of being bigger than it really is. Plush grey carpet lines the floor and a fancy lampshade hangs over the light on the ceiling. A large window lets in light from outside and a nice view of the street.

“This looks like a nice bedroom for the twins.” John says, stepping inside. “What do you think Dave?”

Dave steps in after him, surveying the room with critical eyes. Finally, he responds. “Yeah, it looks nice. It'll look even better with furniture, curtains and a splash of paint.”

“You have children?” Alice asks, eyebrow quirking up slightly. Her expression is one they've seen on many different people. Curiosity paired with a painfully obvious whirring thought process.

“Haha yes!” John smiles, clapping his hands together. “Our little twins, Elizabeth and James. They're 14 months old right now, but our old apartment was getting too small for them! They're with their grandad at the moment, getting spoilt rotten.”

“So are they like…? Umm...yours?” Alice trails off, eyes flicking between the two of them.

“Yes they're biological.” Dave deadpans before she can even ask properly.

“Oh. Well.” Alice has the decency to look embarrassed at least. By now they're a little used to that question so they just leave it be. Alice claps her hands together to break the tension in the air. “Let's go look at the next room then?”

“That sounds good.” John smiles and follows, catching Dave's hand on the way out and pulling him along with him.

 

Alice leads them further down the hallway, into the far door. It opens up into a lounge room type area with a fireplace. Like the rest of the house, it's devoid of furniture. From this room, another open doorway leads down to the kitchen and past that, the dining room. To their right is another door.

“The lounge room, as you can see.” Alice gestures around. “A fireplace is the defining feature of this room--great for heat in winter. They're quite rare in housing these days. It's quite lucky for one to be in such a modern house.”

“We could toast marshmallows by it and make s’mores.” Dave kneels in front of the empty fireplace, placing a hand against the clean slate on the bottom.

“Yes, that's a great idea.” John agrees, crouching down beside his boyfriend. Dave leans forwards and peers up the chimney.

“Uh...yes.” Alice continues, confused tone hidden underneath a professional one.

“We could do the thing where you stick a snickers bar in a cored apple and roast it in the fire.” Excitement has crept its way into Dave's voice.

“Dave I'm allergic to peanuts we can't do that.” John replies, a little sadly.

“Well I'll give you a mars bar instead.” Dave replies matter-of-factly. “Can't have you dying on us.”

“Let's move on to the bathroom.” Alice says quickly.

“Obviously the most important room in the house.” Dave nods absentmindedly as he stands to follow her. “It's where all the business is conducted.”

John grimaces at the joke. “That was terrible.”

“I do my best.” Dave smirks, nudging John with his elbow. “And you love me for it.”

John sighs, shaking his head. “I suppose I do.”

Alice pushes a door in the lounge room open, revealing a small yet functional bathroom. There's a toilet in the further-left corner and a sink opposite it. A shower cubicle with glass walls hides just behind the door. The floor is checked tiles, squares of black and white. All in all, it's a standard bathroom.

“The bathroom may be small but its main focus is function. The ensuite in the master bedroom is a lot grander and takes design much more into account. I'm assuming that you two will share the master bedroom?” Alice asks, pausing her explanation.

“Well the kids aren't getting it.” Dave snorts.

“Well then. Shall we move on to the kitchen?” Alice asks, gesturing out the door.

 

“Oooh the kitchen!” John beams, clapping his hands together. Excitedly, John pulls Dave along with him after Alice.

She's already waiting for them at the doorway to the kitchen, professional smile on her face. John peers into the kitchen, poking his head inside.

It's so cute.

The benches are topped with a dark marble, sparkling dully in the light. Patterned dark blue tiles line the walls above the bench, leading into the dark wooden cupboards. A large window in the wall looks out into the dining room. Directly above the sink is a window that overlooks the side of the garden. A rose bush peeks just above the windowsill, white flowers contrasting the dark-themed kitchen.

“Oh this is nice.” Dave states absently, eyes fixated on John to gauge his reaction. John is awestruck, shakily stepping forward to run a hand along the benchtops.

“Yes.” John says, turning to Dave. “Yes it is.”

“In here you can see the dining room.” Alice points a hand through the window into the dining room. “It offers a nice and cosy atmosphere and a lovely view of the garden.”

“Cosy, what a nice way of saying small.” Dave smirks, resting an arm on John's shoulder. “John, you're very cosy.”

“I'll show you cosy in a minute.” John grumbles.

“Another feature of the dining room is the access to the attic!” Alice maneuvers herself outside into the dining room. Reaching up, she pulls a string which in turn slides a ladder down. “Would you like to have a look?”

“Yes?” John slips out of Dave's arm and ascends the ladder, poking his head up into the dark attic.

It's dark, and pretty empty. The only source of light is coming from a window that faces the street. It's not entirely nice to look at but it's good storage space.

“Nice.” Dave pokes his head into the attic as well, body positioned on top of John's on the ladder.

“Dave holy shit don't, you could break it.” John panics, eyes widening as he turns to his boyfriend.

“It's fine John, chill.” Regardless, Dave descends back down the ladder, seemingly taken John's words to heart.

 

“Now onto the master bedroom, the final and best part of the house!” Alice claps her hands together, waiting until both men are off the ladder before pulling it back up. It retracts with loud clatter.

“Oh this oughta be good.” Dave smirks as Alice pushes open the final door.

Like the rest of the doors, it swinging open reveals an empty room. But like the rest of the house, it doesn't need furniture to show its appeal.

Plush, pastel blue carpet. White curtains fluttering in the breeze of the open window. Light, airy, soft, homey yet still luxurious. Strange ways to describe a goddamned bedroom, but it's a good bedroom. With their own bed and their belongings, it could be really, really nice.

“Let's check out this ensuite ey?” Dave nudges John with his elbow, bringing his attention to the open door to his left. John steps inside after Dave and finds his breath is taken away.

It has a spa bath, for one, large enough for three adults to sit comfortably. The shower in the cubicle to the side has a detachable shower head. The tiles are ornate, with little pink roses painted on every corner of every tile (which is a little tacky but who is John to judge?). The sink is deep with a white marble top, a large mirror positioned on a cupboard above the sink. The toilet itself is nothing special but that's not too big an issue.

 

“So what do you think? Would you like to make an offer or move on to look at the next house?” Alice asks, leaning against the doorframe.

“We'll just discuss it first.” John says 

“Sure thing! I'll let you do that in private.” Alice chirps, and, true to her word, moves away.

“I love it.” John starts, turning to Dave. “I really do. The ensuite, the kitchen, the cute little fireplace, the double bedrooms for the twins…every other house had something wrong with it but I can't find anything wrong with this one.”

“I know what you mean. It's in a good neighbourhood, the attic is a good storage unit for photographs and stuff, the house and garden is big enough and this whole house and area is a good place to raise kids.” Dave nods. “After months of searching I think this is the one.”

“I agree, but what about the cost? I mean it's gotta be pretty expensive. It's  nice neighbourhood, a lovely house with a big garden...” John trails off, meaning clear.

“We have money. You're back in the workforce and my movies make more than enough.” Dave retaliates. They both want the house. “Sure it may be expensive now, but in the long run it's much better than the apartment. The house is pretty much perfect. After all this searching we've found one that suits us, when are we going to get this chance again?”

John nods thoughtfully, chin resting on a hand. “You're right. It is a rare opportunity for us. We should at least make an offer.”

“Yes.” Dave nods. “Let's do that, right now.”

 

They step back inside the master bedroom. 

Alice perks up, focusing a curious stare on the two of them. “Have you decided?”

John looks at Dave. Dave looks at John. Their hands link, fingers curling together. Simultaneously they turn to Alice. “We'd like to make an offer.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And then they buy the house and live in it happily for the rest of their lives.  
> Sorry this chapter came out so late haha thanks for waiting for it! I hope you enjoyed :)


	57. 32 Years Old. Neighbours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a lovely day for gardening, so Dave takes the twins outside. Outside, he meets one of their new neighbours...

“Of course we have to follow the instructions on the pot. That's the only way to garden.” Dave mutters to himself, patting down the soil around the fifth pansy he's planted, making sure it's secured in the ground.

While John is away at work, Dave has taken it upon himself to spruce up the garden beds with some cheap potted colours. He's just planting around the garden beds in front of the porch, brightening up the place. It'll be a nice surprise for when John comes home from work, which should be soon.

It's a lovely day outside, the sun is warm and pleasant. Elizabeth and James are lying on a picnic blanket that Dave has spread out for them. Elizabeth is clutching her stuffed cat toy she got from Dad for her birthday while James sits and watches Dave garden.

“Papa!” Elizabeth waves her toy around, staring intently at the multicoloured pansies in front of Dave.

“What?” Dave smiles, kneeling down on the picnic blanket.

“Flower.” She points at one of the pots, displaying a bright red flower.

Dave leans down to pluck it, placing it in her hair. She gives it a curious look.

“No!” She suddenly cries, and flings it off in the direction of her brother. It hits him square in the face, knocking him back slightly.

Dave lets out a snort of laughter until James starts crying. Immediately he scoops up James in his arms, stroking his hair to soothe his breathy little sobs. “Hey it's okay, she didn't mean it.”

“Yes.” Elizabeth agrees, reaching up her hands.

“See?” Dave says, scooping up Elizabeth. He maneuvers himself to sit on his butt, holding a child in each arm. James sniffles, tears dying down while Elizabeth giggles. “She was just giving you the flower.”

“Flower!” Elizabeth repeats, reaching out for the flower left on the picnic blanket. Dave leans down so that she can grab it. She plucks it off the ground with sure fingers, holding it tightly.

“Can you say flower too James?” Dave asks, bouncing James up and down in his arms. “Flow-er. Come on, say it with me. Flow-er.” James mouth opens and mouths the words alongside Dave, but no sound comes out. That's strange...maybe John was right. They should take James to the doctor soon.

“Good afternoon neighbour.” An old unfamiliar voice croaks out. Dave startles, looking around for the voice. His eyes settle just above the wooden fence to his left, where a wizened old woman peers at him.

“Oh, um, hi.” Dave sets down both Elizabeth and James down on the picnic blanket. “Can I help you?”

“I'm Leslie Jones, your neighbour. I don't believe we've met.” A wrinkled hand makes its way over the fence, being held out to be shaken. Dave rises to his feet, guessing there's no way out of this.

“I'm Dave Strider, we just moved in a few weeks ago.” Dave takes her hand, shaking it. Her hands feel as wrinkly as they look.

“Well welcome to the neighbourhood. I'm afraid that I haven't cooked anything for your housewarming, but I heard Donna is going to bring a lemon meringue pie to welcome you. Those things are divine, Donna is quite the baker.” The hand retreats, but the face stays put. Leslie laughs heartily and joyfully.

“Um, thanks?” Dave doesn't exactly know how to respond to this. The neighbours back in their old apartment building kept to themselves, but when they saw each other in the hallway John was always there to socialise for him. Maybe he could say that his own boyfriend is a better baker? No...that probably would come off as snobbish and rude. What about the twins? Old people like babies, right?

“So where did you move from sweetie?” Leslie asks.

“An apartment building in inner Seattle.” Dave replies, shrugging. “It was getting too small for us and the growing twins so we decided to move.”

“Oh yes…” Leslie peers harder over the fence, staring at Elizabeth and James on the blanket. “Could you introduce us?”

“Oh yeah hold up.” Dave moves back and picks both twins up, securing them against his chest before moving back over to Leslie. “This is Elizabeth and James.”

“Oh aren't they gorgeous?” Leslie coos, reaching a hand over the fence to pinch Elizabeth's cheek.

“No!” Elizabeth shrieks, slapping Leslie's hand away. “No! No! No!”

“She just doesn't like new people, she'll get used to you in time.” Dave apologises as he pulls Elizabeth away, feeling bad at Leslie's hurt expression.

“Oh that's okay. Little sweetheart is just shy.”

“Nooooooo!” Elizabeth wails, voice long and drawn out. James starts crying alongside her, breathing heavily.

“Oh God.” Dave says, eyes widening and mouth flattening. He begins rocking them in his arms to try and calm them down. “Okay um, don't cry. Please. Please don't cry.”

“You're not doing it right, here, let me.” Leslie says, holding out her hand expectantly.

“No I...I think that will make it worse.” Dave laughs nervously, rocking them against his chest. Goddammit Leslie, stay in your fucking lane.

“Oh…” Leslie narrows her eyes at him.

“Well because they don't particularly like strangers, so I don't think they'd appreciate a stranger holding them.” Dave has never wished for John more before in his life. He'd know what to say.

“That does make sense. My apologies for riling them up.” Leslie pauses, a gentle smile spreading across her face.

“Oh that's fine, Elizabeth does this with everyone. You're lucky she hasn't bitten you. She...she does that sometimes.” Dave sighs, flashing back to the numerous times she's bitten strangers that have gotten a bit too close to her. That's always a hard one to explain.

“She bites? Neither of my children ever did that.” Leslie frowns.

“Mine are special.” Dave sighs yet again. He places a quick kiss on both of their foreheads. James has calmed completely now, and Elizabeth has quieted.

“All children are special in their own little ways. Why, my daughter used to crawl over to the shoe rack and have a little munch on all the shoes!” Leslie laughs. Dave laughs with her, feeling a little more comfortable in this conversation.

“Wow, okay. At least Elizabeth doesn't do that.”

“Oh! My son also used to ‘talk to the crows’ by sitting on the back step and crowing back to them.” Leslie laughs a little harder, wiping a tear from her eye.

“Oh god. I'm glad these two haven't started all that creepy stuff yet.” Dave laughs. He's glad to find this neighbour to be friendly. His mind starts drifting back to all the sitcoms he's seen over the years. Leslie seems the type to barge into a neighbours house, bringing baked goods and hilarity. Dave can almost hear that studio audience canned laughter now. Somewhere in his mind he hears the anguished cry of ‘Kramer!’.

“Oh they will someday soon, trust me. Children tend to do some creepy things sometimes. Oh, like Karen and her imaginary friend…” Leslie trails off, eyes far away.

“Go on, that sounds interesting.” Dave laughs, prompting her out of her thoughts.

“It's normal for children to have imaginary friends, but the way she'd describe hers...wasn't normal.” Leslie lowers her voice into a whisper.

“Oh yeah? What was it? Eight legs? Five eyes? A thirst for blood?” Dave grins, all while hoping that his children don't have that imaginary friend. Sure, he's all for creativity, but he doesn't want to wake up to his own personal Shining at 2 in the morning. 

Leslie frowns at him. “You've been watching too many movies dearie.”

“Well, I make them.” Dave shrugs modestly. James takes this opportunity to pick up one of Dave's hoodie cords and suck on it.

“Oh?” Leslie sounds genuinely surprised. “But you're so young!”

“I'm 32.” 

“That's young in my books dearie, I'm 79. When you get my age, everyone's young.” Leslie laughs. “What types of movies do you make?”

“Art films.” Dave replies without hesitation. Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff  _ is _ art.

“Oh that sounds fascinating. Tell me the name of some, I'll have to check it out.” Leslie pulls out a notepad and pen from her pocket, resting the nib of the pen on the paper.

“Oh it's a whole franchise with about six installments and another on the way. It's called Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff.” Dave explains, shifting his grip on Elizabeth, who is sliding down his side.

“That sounds...long, what's it about?” Leslie asks as she scribbles down the information.

“It's about all sorts of things really. I like to leave the viewer to interpret the franchise for themselves.” Dave explains. He sounds super pretentious, but that's the whole point. They're art films.

Elizabeth coos softly, thumping her head against Dave's chest. Dave laughs and presses a kiss to her forehead.

“Well I'll give it a watch and tell you my own interpretations afterwards.” Leslie tucks her notepad back in her pocket and her pen back behind her ear.

 

A car horn honks. Dave turns around, smile crossing his face as he realises just whose car it is. John's car pulls into the driveway, sun glinting off its silver body.

“Oh, John's home.” Dave feels relief and contentment wash over him as his eyes follow John's car.

“John?”

“My boyfriend. He's great, I'm sure he'd love to chat.” As Dave says that, John hops out of the car, closing it behind him.

“Dad!” Elizabeth cries, stretching her arms out as far as she can towards her dad. In doing so, she nearly falls out of Dave's arms and he has to set her down. 

John crouches down and holds his arms out wide for her. She toddles confidently on over to him. She's gotten so much better at walking, quite determined to walk independently. Once she gets close enough, John scoops her into his arms, blowing a cheeky raspberry into her belly. She shrieks with laughter, swatting playfully at his hands.

“I missed my baby! Yes I did!” John coos, slowly making his way over to Dave, James and Leslie. Upon seeing her, he shoots her his friendliest grin and sticks his hand out. “Oh, hi there! My names John, it's nice to meet you!”

“The Lord is going to punish you for your sinful ways.” Leslie full on scowls, far from the sweet-tempered lady Dave was talking to earlier.

“Pardon?”

“You faggots are going to hell. I feel sorry for your innocent children, who will suffer for your sins. I pray that God has mercy on their souls.” And with that, Leslie disappears alongside all Dave's hopes of having a cool neighbour to chat with.

“Elizabeth should have bitten her.” Dave glowers after her retreating form.

“Dave, that's not nice!” John frowns disapprovingly.

Dave just shrugs. “You heard what she said. She called us faggots and said our kids were going to hell. Elizabeth biting her would be  _ nice _ . On the other hand, I've done a lovely job sprucing up the garden beds with flowers.”

“I..yeah. It looks wonderful Dave.” John sighs, eyes downcast. He looks as if he has the weight of the world on his shoulders and Dave feels helpless. All he can do is glare after the long-gone Leslie. That only makes him feel a little better. John gives him a small, sad smile. “Come on. Help me unpack the groceries from the car, I've had a  _ long _ day.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :(  
> So um yeah, that happened. I hope you enjoyed it :)!


	58. 32 Years Old. Wedding!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jade, Rose and Kanaya get married.

It truly is a beautiful day for a wedding.

The sky is blue and cloudless. The birds are tweeting. The guests are all waiting with bated breath. Kanaya looks stunning in her wedding gown, and Rose looks so handsome in her suit. As Jade stands upon the podium, looking both her fiancées in the eyes, her heart swells with admiration and pride.

Their positioning is a little awkward as there is three instead of two, but Jade is too ecstatic to care.

“You may now say your vows.” The officiant says with a flourish. 

“I vow to always love the both of you, throughout sickness and health. I vow to always wake you up with coffee in the mornings that you have to work, made just the way you like it.” Jade says, a wide smile on her face. “I vow to always encourage and support you and always make sure you're feeling okay. I love you both so much, and from this day forward I devote myself to you.”

“I vow to always love and cherish the both of you, throughout sickness and health. I vow to not leave my used coffee mugs around in my office and other parts of the house.” Rose says, eyes soft. “I vow to stand by your sides no matter what, and to remain loyal to you through thick and thin. Even when times are tough I vow to love the both of you through it all.”

“I vow to always love and cherish the both of you, throughout sickness and health. I vow to always make sure you never leave the house looking like a mess.” Kanaya says. “I vow to hold you both close at night and even closer in my heart. I love you, and I pledge all my love and loyalty onto you.”

“Then do you, Jade Harley take both these women; Kanaya Maryam and Rose Lalonde, to be your lawfully wedded wives?” The officiant says, gesturing at Kanaya and Rose respectively.

“I do!” Jade beams so wide it feels like her mouth is going to drop off.

“Do you, Rose Lalonde take both these women; Jade Harley and Kanaya Maryam to be your lawfully wedded wives?”

“I do.” Rose smiles softly, gaze shifting between the two women.

“And finally do you, Kanaya Maryam, take both these women; Jade Harley and Rose Lalonde to be your lawfully wedded wives?”

“I do.” A smile crosses over Kanaya’s face as she says those two words.

“You may now kiss the brides.”

The audience claps loudly, cheering as the three women exchange kisses. Jade can't help but laugh in absolute happiness, her cheeks smudged with lipstick. Kanaya shares her laughter, and soon Rose joins in too.

After months, no,  _ years _ of planning and dreaming and researching, she's finally married to her wonderful girlfriends! 

 

☆☆☆

 

“I still can't believe we're finally married…” Jade sighs happily yet quietly, eyes surveying the room. Everyone is seated at circular tables set around the room. It's a large turn out, with family, friends and coworkers all attentively watching the speeches the bridesmaids and such are making. John, as Rose's best man, is midway through his speech. The audience is sitting in rapt attention and laughing along to all the funny parts. John always has had a way with people.

“You've said this multiple times dear.” Rose replies in a whisper. Despite the snappiness of her words, her tone is soft and happy.

“Shhh!” Kanaya hushes, turning to look at both of them from her spot in the middle. “Let John make his speech. It's quite sweet.”

John, who is midway through a monologue about one time in college when Kanaya ‘accidentally’ spilt cereal all over Rose's favourite sweater, shoots Kanaya a grateful smile. “And then, who could believe it, Kanaya turns up the next day with a completely new sweater for Rose. She'd obviously made it herself and apparently it was pretty obvious to Rose that Kanaya didn't spill those Lucky Charms over her sweater on accident. Dave and I were just looking on in amusement as Rose asked Kanaya why she hated her original sweater. I don't think I've seen a human turn as red as Kanaya did in that moment! Rose refused to wear it and so Kanaya kept making more sweaters and Rose refused to wear those too, and it escalated into this whole big thing that was really funny to watch! In the end Jade stepped in and got Rose to wear the original sweater, and got Kanaya to donate the rest to charity.”

Laughter ripples around the audience. Jade laughs with them, elbowing Kanaya in the arm. Rose huffs a little under her breath, and Kanaya sniffs haughtily at the memory.

“Well anyway.” John chuckles. “What I'm trying to say is that they're good for each other. They have their ups and their downs, and I'm happy for them. I've known Rose and Jade since 1st Grade, and Kanaya since college and I am not only proud to call myself their friend, but incredibly happy for their marriage.”

“Aw, thank you John, that was sweet.” Jade says as she rises to her feet, shooting a smile John's way. “And now to the part of the afternoon everyone's been waiting for...the cake!”

Two servers wheel out a gigantic cake on a metal gurney and wheel it in front of the three brides. The cake itself is quite tall, covered in neat white fondant. On the top of the cake rests figures of the three of them--all in cute replica outfits and hairdos. Down the side of the cake is sugar flowers, sugar pearls and edible glitter, cascading down the cake. Rose, Jade and Kanaya pick up the knife with a hand each, and together, make the first slice. The cake has a surprise inside--six layers, coloured to make up a rainbow. It's only a simple vanilla flavoured cake, but it looks like so much more.

After their first slice, the servers get to work in serving up the rest of the cake to everyone. Rose, Jade and Kanaya take priority, and on top of their slices they each get their own mini replicas. The rest of their table gets served, then the rest of the circular tables until everyone is happily eating cake and chatting amongst themselves.

 

Dave, who is seated at one of the closest circular tables to their table, is animatedly chatting with John. He's leaning casually on the chair, balancing his plate on his knee. John has James in his arms and is feeding him bits of cake. Rose is cooing over him while trying to look like she's not doing that.

Jade leans against Kanaya, shuffling around to get comfortable. Kanaya drapes an arm over Jade's shoulder.

“So where are you three going to on your honeymoon?” Dave asks, drawing Jade and Kanaya into the conversation.

“We're going to a resort on the coast of Spain.” Jade says dreamily. “It has an infinity pool and an all you can eat breakfast buffet and it's all super fancy, I can't wait.”

“That sounds so cool.” John sighs. “We'll miss you so much. Send us postcards.”

“Of course we'll send you postcards! What kind of friends would we be if we didn't?” Jade chirps, laughing. She picks up a glass of champagne to her left, bringing it to her lips and taking a sip.

“We'll only be gone for two weeks, but only three days will be spent at the hotel. We're going on a bit of a road trip through Europe.” Kanaya smiles coyly.

“Mainly because the hotel is so expensive that a full two weeks is well over our budget.” Rose rolls her eyes and puts her hand on her chin.

“What's your route through Europe? You avoiding any particular countries?” Dave asks, left foot idly pushing the pram back and forth. Inside, Elizabeth is babbling happily.

“Well obviously we're starting in the coastal region of Spain, then up the coast of France until we head inland to Paris. Our final destination is Rome, but we'll be taking a detour through Germany and Austria before we get there.” Rose explains. 

“Oh Paris, the city of love.” John sighs dreamily, waving a piece of the green layer of cake around on a plastic fork. James tracks it with his eyes, mouth open.

“And also massive disappointment.” Dave finishes. “You'd better have that tourist hotline on speed dial, you're going to need it.”

“Since when have you gone to Paris?” Jade laughs, giving Dave a weird look.

“It's a reality Jade, I do happen to know a lot more than you think.” Dave says 

“Oooh, someone been doing his research. You planning a holiday there?” John teases, smiling coyly and poking his fork in Dave's direction.

“Not to Paris, come on John, I have more class than that. Paris is a garbage city.” Dave scowls sulkily at John. John smiles back, a light flush to his cheeks. In his lap, James shifts into a tiny little monkey and grabs John's plate of cake. John lets out a huff of half amusement and annoyance and places the cake back out of reach. He didn't realise raising a shifter would be quite like this but he's getting used to it.

“We're going there on our honeymoon, remember?” Rose waves a hand in Dave's face. “Don't spoil the image of it before we get there.”

Dave just shrugs and leaves it at that.

 

“Oh look, the entertainment is beginning.” Kanaya points out.

Indeed, it is. The band they hired to play has begun their first song. It's a lively, upbeat thing and already people are on the dance floor.

While everyone is distracted, James makes a break for John's plate. John lets out a bark of surprise, too shocked to do anything else as his son shoves cake in his face. Luckily, Dave has control of the situation and easily scoops James up into his arms.

“No sweetie, you can't do that. Too much cake is bad for you. Besides, that's your dad's slice and it's rude to snatch like that.” Dave scolds. James looks up at him with wide eyes before shifting into a small grey puppy and snuggling close. “Wha-no you're supposed to be in trouble.”

John laughs, reaching forward to pat puppy-James’ head. His snout is covered in buttercream and cake crumbs, which John gently wipes away with a serviette. “He sure knows ways of getting out of it.”

“You're not helping.” Dave grumbles, but cradles James just the same.

“Well anyway, I think I'd like to have a dance. Rose, Kanaya, would you like to join me?” Jade rises to her feet, brushing down her slender gown.

“Why Miss Harley it would be my pleasure.” Rose reaches over and takes her hand.

“It's Mrs Harley now.” Jade laughs. “Kanaya, you coming?”

“Of course.” Kanaya mock curtsies and takes Jade's other hand. 

Together, they weave through the chairs, mumbling apologies to the people seated.

“Oh so just leave us by ourselves mid conversation.” Dave grumbles sarcastically. His words, although quiet, are picked up on by Rose.

“You can dance too Dave, no one's stopping you.” Rose calls over her shoulder.

Dave blinks a little, before shrugging. James shifts back into his human form, blinking rapidly. Dave ruffles his hair, placing a kiss on his forehead.

 

The dance floor is a little crowded by now, but people part to make way for the three brides. Jade links them all in a circle via their hands and they spin around quickly.

It's fun, nice. Some people are cheering and clapping (‘some people’ being John, singular). The aftertaste of the cake is still in Jade's mouth, sweet and vanillary.

After a little while, the music slows, and they match that beat accordingly.

Finally, after a long struggle with the law, they are married. It has been quite the struggle, but its all worth it in the end.

Their steps are in sync, their wedding rings are polished and golden under the lights. Surrounded by good company, filled up with good food and drinks and happier than they've ever felt, they dance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if the update took a littke longer than usual, I've been really sick at the moment (and I still have it, joy) and also studying for trials. I was going to post it last night but lo and behold, we all got a blackout. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed.  
> Next chapter, we'll find out what's wrong with James. But if you've picked up on the clues or have already read my other fic about the kids, than you already know.


	59. 32 Years Old. Discoveries.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave finally take James to the doctors and learn the truth about him.

It's on a Tuesday afternoon that they learn the truth about James.

He's mute.

His vocal cords never developed properly in the womb and are permanently relaxed, meaning he’ll never be able to make noise, let alone speak.

John, in shock, clutches his son to his chest. “No, no, that can't be possible. How can that be possible?”

“John.” Dave places a reassuring hand on John's knee. John turns to him, panicked, grieving look in his eyes. Dave feels the same emotions echoing in his soul.

“I'm afraid it is.” Doctor Kapoor is sympathetic, eyes full of pity as he looks at the toddler on John's lap. The computer beside him is displaying an image of James’ throat, a screenshot from a little earlier. James still has teary cheeks and red eyes from the whole process of getting that photo taken. He is however, now contentedly licking a lollipop as he sits in his dad's lap.

“Why does it have to be him? What did he do?” John rubs furiously at his eyes. “He's so young, he doesn't deserve this. He'll never be able to tell someone he loves them, or make any casual conversation, or get a job or, or, or anything!”

Doctor Kapoor just continues to look sympathetic, letting John rant it out. Dave still looks like he's processing everything, a blank look on his face as he stares at his son.

“Isn't there something we can do? Some surgery to fix him or something?” John begs, words frantic and pleading.

“I'm afraid there's no cure with our current technologies.” Doctor Kapoor shakes his head sympathetically.

“...oh.” John leans back in his chair, defeated.

“Of course when he's a little older he'll have to learn sign language, as will you as well.” Doctor Kapoor continues on, professionalism and sympathy mixed in his voice.

“And where are we supposed to learn it?” Dave asks.

“Well there are courses available both online and in person.” Doctor Kapoor explains. “I believe the hospital runs a course on it every Sunday morning starting at 10:00.”

John proceeds to pull out his phone and opens up the memo app, thumb ready to start typing. “That's great, yeah. Any more suggestions?”

“Well of course I must suggest the hospital course, but there are others out there. But really, before you sign up for anything, you should do some research on what's available.”

“What's the differences between the online courses and the in person courses?” John pauses in his scribbling to ask.

“Well I'd say the in person courses are much more beneficial, but the online courses are most cost effective and better if you don't have much time.” Doctor Kapoor explains, hands gesturing calmly as he talks.

“We'll make time.” John looks up briefly from his furious scribbling. “My schedule is clear on the weekends and Dave pretty much is his own boss, we'll make it work.”

“Good, good.” Doctor Kapoor nods. “I'm glad that's settled. Now, James’ condition will require a translator in the future, in particular for school.”

“That's uh, thinking a little far ahead, isn't it?” Dave finally says something, although his gaze is still firmly fixated on James. James, at the sound of Dave's voice, turns to look at him, a little bit of drool on his chin.

“I suppose so. Either way, he will need a translator.”

“Of course.” John sighs, shaking his head. “And how much will that cost?”

“Well actually, for school at least, there will be a government issued translator.”

“Oh great!” John perks up. “See Dave? That's great!”

“Yeah, I guess.” Dave replies sullenly.

“Well.” Doctor Kapoor claps his hands together and rises to his feet. “I believe we're done for today. I trust you'll be back for the regular monthly check-up of the twins next week?”

“Of course we will.” John rises to his feet as well, scooping James up in his arms in the process. “We look forward to seeing you then.”

“Uh, yeah. Adios.” Dave gives him a small wave.

“Have a good one.” Doctor Kapoor nods

“You too!” John smiles. With Dave following closely behind, they leave Doctor Kapoor’s office with the new knowledge of James’ condition.

 

Later, once Dave has tucked Elizabeth and James into bed, he joins John on their own bed.

John is determinedly tapping away at his own laptop, barely sparing a glance as Dave slips into his true form and lays his head on his shoulder.

“Whatcha doing?”

“Researching.” Comes John's reply, face lit up by the computer screen. “I've booked us in for a sign language course on Sunday mornings.”

“Oh, right. Okay.” Dave blinks slowly. In some ways, he's still processing the events of the morning. “The hospital one?”

“Yeah, it was the best option out of all I could find. Come listen to this, you need to learn this.” John takes an earbud out from his own ear and jams it in Dave's.

Dave splutters in shock before placing it in properly. He pauses, watching it for a minute. “Is that a TED Talk?”

“I'm doing some research before our course.”

“You want to be the teacher's pet, huh?” Dave jokes, elbowing John lightly.

“No, I want to support our son.” John replies, looking at Dave coldly.

“Oh.” Dave balks. “Right, yeah.”

Embarrassed, he focuses intently on the video. The presenter is talking and talking and Dave can't stop all those thoughts from swirling around in his head.

“Aren't you worried?” Dave speaks up after a while. “I mean, raising a disabled child won't be easy.”

“I know.” John sighs, pausing the video and giving him a teary-eyed look. “And quite honestly, I'm terrified. I'm terrified that he's going to get bullied at school. I'm terrified we're not going to do a good job teaching him about the world. I'm terrified he's somehow going to resent us for not doing anything right, or hold it against us that he's mute. I'm so scared Dave.” John takes a long, shaky breath, wiping tears from his eyes. “But we can do it, we have to.”

Dave lays a hand on John's hand, patting it awkwardly. “I think you've basically described parenting as a whole.”

John laughs. “I guess so. I'm just worried I'm not doing a good job.”

“Hey, stop that. You're doing a perfect job.” Dave scolds lightly. He snuggles closer, both to comfort his boyfriend and to steal warmth. “Come on, isn't there some research you wanted yo show me?”

“Oh yeah!” John perks up. By now the video has changed into something else. It's of a man sign-singing over Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and while it's endlessly fascinating, it isn't what John's looking for. He restarts the previous video since Dave hasn't seen all of it and leans back.

It's strange to think that his son is mute, but it's not entirely unexpected. Regardless of everything, he'll do his best to raise him right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone was wondering where Elizabeth was, she'd been dropped off at Dad's house to get spoilt.  
> Also at the moment in pokemon ultra moon I'm traversing the ultra wilds to try and get a shiny altaria (preferbly female so I'll name her goldie and mega evolve her and get my avatar to match and defeat battle tree) but I keep finding other, non-altaria shiny pokemon and I don't mean to sound ungrateful but cmon dude, i want my baby  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! Next chapter is just a filler shopping trip :)


	60. 32 Years Old. Shopping Trip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John and Dave go on a grocery run with James and Elizabeth.

“What do you think about this one?” Dave holds up a loaf of bread from the shelf loaded with similar loaves. It's the Trader Joes brand one, one of the fresh rolls baked on site.

John grabs the packaging, guiding it up to his nose and taking a whiff. “Yeah, smells good. Chuck it in the cart.”

“In the cart it goes.” Dave shrugs, placing it in the shopping cart. From the baby seat, Elizabeth looks down at him sullenly, clearly wanting out. Too bad for her, they've learnt from their past mistakes and she's not going anywhere. James is hanging onto Dave's pant leg, clinging on for dear life. “I still don't get why you have to smell it every time.”

“It's a surefire way of checking freshness.” John explains yet again with an exasperated expression on his face.

“Yeah okay, you breadsniffer.” Dave teases, leaning all his weight against the shopping cart. Elizabeth beckons him closer, and once he's close enough, takes hold of the bridge of his shades.

“What are you, a bully in an 80s comedy movie?” John raises an eyebrow, chuckling lightly. Still looking at Dave with the same affectionate smile, he pulls out his shopping list from khaki shorts.

“Smell ya later, nerd.” Dave replies, eyes worriedly fixated on Elizabeth, who now has one end of his shades in her mouth.

“I think that's more 90s slang. You know, like Pokémon and Fresh Prince.” John says, eyes focussed on his list. “Okay, we got the bread, now we need the vegetables.”

“Ugh, gross right Lizzie?” Dave says, prodding Elizabeth's nose with a finger. She bats at his hand with a frown on her face. Unbothered, Dave turns his attention to James, still determinedly clinging to his leg. “What about you James? Do you think vegetables are yucky?”

James nods shyly, blue eyes darting from his sister to his father.

“No! No vegetables are yummy! Your papa's just lying because he wants them all for himself!” John says frantically, leaning down to James’ eye level. He looks up at Dave, narrowing his eyes. “Dave, we want them to eat their vegetables.”

“But they're gross.” Dave shrugs.

John sighs. “Come on, let's go get those accursed vegetables.”

 

John moves past Dave, ruffling James’ hair as he passes. The produce section is right next to the bread and baked goods section, meaning in only a few steps John is feeling up several tomatoes.

“You're getting  _ really _ into that John.” Dave smirks, wheeling the shopping cart in behind John. He adjusts the shades on his face, having reclaimed them from Elizabeth. James, still determinedly clinging to Dave's pant-leg, is hurrying to keep up.

John gives him the evil eye. “It's for ripeness. You do the same thing.”

“But you were the one to rush in to fondle them.” Dave says, grinning cockily.

“Okay Rose, no need to over analyse every little detail. Of course checking a tomatoes ripeness is phallic to you.” John huffs, turning back to the tomatoes.

There's a silence as he tests out the different tomatoes, settling on the ripest ones and placing them in a plastic bag.

“Hey John.”

“What?” John looks up, a little annoyed. Dave is holding a carrot to his crotch, and when John looks down at it, he wiggles it about.

“Look.”

“Dave.” John frowns, over exaggerating his annoyed expression to make himself look even angrier as he finds himself struggling to contain his laughter. “That is inappropriate, what are you, 12?”

Dave pulls it away from his crotch and pokes John in the arm with it.

“Don't!” John protests, a few giggles slipping out. “What about the kids?”

“They'll get a great sense of humour.” Dave reasons, jabbing John yet again with it.

At that, John bursts into laughter. His whole body shakes and he can hardly breathe as laughter pours out of him. John bends over double, laughing like a madman. A few other shoppers stare at him strangely, giving him confused and strange looks. 

James unhinges himself from Dave's leg and toddles over to John, concerned at his wheezing. John pulls him close, still giggling madly. “I'm okay sweetie, your papa just told a silly joke. He's always so silly isn't he?” John lets go of James, grinning madly. James nods slowly.

“Yeah kiddo, I'm hilarious.” Dave ruffles James’ hair with one hand while sheepishly putting the carrot back. James lets out a breathy little puff of laughter. “Don't go stealing my joke though!” Dave warns, waggling a finger. “Make up some of your own.”

“Okay!” John springs up, wiping away some tears of laughter. “Rest of the list! Gotta be serious!”

“Super serious.” Dave nods, leaning back on the shopping cart.

“I've got the bread and the tomatoes, so I can cross them off with everything else. Now we just need some more apples, frozen peas, milk and cat food.” John reads from the list.

“Dessert!” Elizabeth shrieks suddenly, leaning forward in the shopping cart.

“And dessert of course.” John agrees, pocketing his list.

“I'll grab the apples.” Dave offers. James toddles back on over to him and recankles him, holding on tightly. “James is coming too I guess.”

“Alright, I'll meet you in the dairy aisle.” John sets the bag of tomatoes back in the shopping cart. He takes it from Dave, wheeling it around in a circle, towards the dairy aisle.

Dave watches them head off, just standing there staring. As he stands there, little arms slowly tighten themselves around his leg. Dave turns his gaze to his son, who looks up to lock eyes with him.

“You right there? You gonna let me go get the apples without being cankled?” Dave asks, raising an eyebrow and putting a hand on his hip.

James of course, doesn't reply. Instead, he pulls up his legs around Dave's leg so that he's completely off the floor and completely hanging off Dave's leg.

Dave is well and truly cankled.

 

John wheels the shopping cart down the dairy aisle, talking to Elizabeth as he goes. He's trying to be a good dad and teach her the names of everything in the aisle but she really doesn't seem too interested. Nevertheless, he's trying.

“And here's the milk Elizabeth, see?” John says, picking up a carton of milk from the shelf. “Doesn't it look yummy? We can use it for all sorts of yummy stuff.”

She stares at it blankly. “Dessert.” She says sullenly.

John sighs loudly, putting the milk in the shopping trolley in defeat. “Yeah, okay, I'm getting dessert.”

John wheels the trolley across the aisle, positioning it in front of the freezer full of ice cream.

“Ice cream!” Elizabeth makes grabby motions towards the boxes of ice cream in the freezer.

“Yes Elizabeth, ice cream!” John chirps, grinning. Inwardly, he groans at the fact she's so excited about ice cream and not the healthy stuff. “Now since your brothers with your papa, dessert is your choice tonight, what do you want?”

“Ice cream!” Elizabeth cries again, looking frantically at the range.

“Here, I'll give you a closer look.” Gently, John scoops her up in his arms, resting her against his hip. “There's so much to choose from! Chocolate, marshmallow, fairy floss, vanilla, strawberry, mango, banana, green tea, lemon-lime…” John trails off.

Elizabeth brings a hand to her face, thinking, before she utters a loud “mango!”

“Mango! That sounds so yummy Elizabeth, good choice!” John smiles with relief at her healthier choice, awkwardly maneuvering himself to open the door and grab a box, all while holding Elizabeth.

After putting the box in the shopping cart, John places Elizabeth back into the top of the shopping cart. She wiggles in disappointment, but stills when John plants a kiss to her forehead.

“Yo John, I got the apples!” Dave calls, appearing in the far end on the aisle. He's holding a bag of apples aloft and shuffling awkwardly, dragging James along with him.

“That's great Dave!” John calls back, wheeling the trolley towards Dave. “Elizabeth chose dessert for everyone.”

“Oh cool, what'd she choose?” Dave asks, peering over to look in the shopping cart.

“Some mango popsicles.” John smiles, ruffling Elizabeth's hair. “She has such good taste.”

“She does, can't wait.”

Elizabeth peers smugly over the edge of the shopping cart, looking down at her brother. He stares back up at her with wide eyes--which widen further when she pokes a tongue out at him.

“The frozen peas should be in the next aisle along.” John comments, leaning against the shopping cart. “And then the cat food is sat the other end of the store. Then we're good to go.”

“Frozen peas, how exciting.” Dave deadpans. James looks up at him, imitating his expression.

“Hey! We're out of frozen peas! You  always eat all of them up whenever I make vegetables.” John pouts. He brings up his hand to his chin in thought. “Now that I think about it, I think we're pretty low on frozen corn too.”

“Delicious.” Dave deadpans again.

John sighs. “Come on.”

John wheels the shopping cart over to the next aisle, Dave limping behind him. The frozen peas and corn are easily collected, soon nestled in the shopping cart right next to the box of mango popsicles. Then, they just have to make the long trek across the store to the pet aisle, all to get Mittens some cat food. It's truly amazing that she's lived this long--Dave reckons she's still going because of her pure hatred for humankind.

James is still refusing to let go of Dave's leg, which is equal parts adorable and hilarious. He tends to get super clingy around strangers and it's the sweetest thing.

John chuckles to himself as he places the cat food inside the shopping cart, eyes on Dave and James.

“What you laughing at?” Dave asks, tone a little accusatory and very snappish.

“What, I'm not allowed to laugh?” John quirks up an eyebrow, smirk on his lips.

“I can't help but feeling you're laughing at me.” Dave pouts, placing a hand on James’ head. 

John laughs again, nudging Dave in the ribs with his elbow. “I'm laughing at how sweet the two of you are. James adores you so much, and he refuses to let go of your leg, it's adorable. I'm not laughing at you, I'll never do that--unless you do something funny of course. You should know that by now.”

“Oh, right.” Dave freezes, looking guilty. “I'm sorry.”

“Come on, let's go pay for all this stuff.” John brushes off Dave's silent apology with a smile.

 

John wheels the shopping cart back across the store, passing many aisles before parking the trolley in the shortest queue he can find. There's only one person ahead of them, and the cashier is speedily scanning up their items.

Dave turns to John, still guilty for his snapping earlier. “I'm sorry.” He tries again.

“Dave, it's okay, you didn't even snap at me that badly.” John laughs, patting Dave on the arm reassuringly. “I snap at you sometimes too, you know that. You've had a long day at work, and now you're doing a grocery run with me. I'm guessing you're just tired?”

“Yeah, something like that…Been holding onto this form for a while...” Dave trails off. He begins to load up the conveyor belt with their items, placing a barrier between their stuff and the person before thems stuff.

John looks around for something, anything, to break the awkward silence that has settled between them. His eyes fall on a small display of chupa chups, neatly organised into a rainbow pattern. He pulls off three--watermelon, strawberry and lemonade--and holds them in front of Elizabeth and James. “What flavour do you want?”

“Watermelon!” Elizabeth cries, pointing a pudgy finger at the green wrapping. 

John crouches down to James’ height, holding out the lollipops. “What about you you James?”

Shyly, Janes brings a finger to point at the lemonade one. John grins at him and ruffles his hair, standing up. He places the three lollipops on the conveyor belt.

“You want a lollipop Dave?” John asks, hand hovering over the display.

“Uh, sure thing. Cola please.” At Dave's words, John plucks a cola flavoured chupa chup off the display and next to the other three.

“Hi, how are you today?” The cashier chirps, already scanning up their first item. 

“Oh, good, good.” John smiles absentmindedly, moving over to the bag collection area. One is already waiting for him and he places it in the trolley.

The cashier waves happily at Elizabeth as she scans with lightning speed. Elizabeth only scowls back. The cashier just laughs, unbothered. “She a little shy?”

“Oh, she's far from shy.” John laughs good naturedly. “She just...doesn't like new people.”

James shyly peers up at the cashier from behind Dave's leg. The cashier leans down to look at him. James shoves his face into Dave's pant leg, embarrassed. “I'm guessing he's the shy one then.”

“Oh, yeah. He's definitely the shy one.” John laughs again.

Dave bends over, peering down at James. Gently, Dave tucks a strand of grey hair behind his sons ears. “You want to say hello to the lady?”

James shyly takes a step away from Dave and waves at the cashier. The cashier giggles lightly, waving back.

“Do you want a stamp?” She asks in a voice sweetened by honey.

Dave looks down at James. James nods slightly and holds his hand out. Dave lifts James up in the air and holds him closer to the cashier. The cashier pulls open a drawer beside her and plucks out a stamp. Still giggling, she presses the stamp against his hand. James smiles, admiring the red smiley face now on his hand.

The cashier resumes scanning and bagging all their items, making casual small talk as she does. John engages with it, placing each bag in the shopping cart. Dave just bounces James up and down in his arms absentmindedly, relieved to no longer be cankled.

“That'll be $82.99, will that be card or cash today?” The cashier chirps out, tapping the computer screen.

“Card please.” John holds out his card, ready to swipe.

“No, I can pay.” Dave interrupts, holding out his own card.

“Dave, you paid last time. We take it in turns, remember?” John bats Dave's card away with his own card, levelling him with a stare.

“It's all good John, I can pay.” Dave shoves his card forward, yet it is immediately batted away again by John's card.

“Dave I got this.” Before Dave can protest further, John presses his card flat against the machine. It lets out a beep of acceptance and John retracts his card triumphantly.

“Have a nice day!” The cashier chirps, already moving onto serving the next customer. John echoes her words quietly, already wheeling off.

 

John wheels the trolley a little way away and begins digging through the bags. After a moment, he pulls out the four lollipops, victorious.

“Cola for Dave, Watermelon for Elizabeth, Lemonade for James and Strawberry for myself.” John hands out the lollipops as he names them.

Elizabeth grabs the wrapping with her teeth, and, in an amazing stunt, rips it clean off and spits it out. John nervously picks up the wrapping--now wet. Dave unwraps James’ lollipop one handed, handing it back to him before unwrapping his own. John unwraps his own lollipop, sticking it in his mouth.

“Come on, now for the fun part. Going home.” John cracks a grin, beginning a slow amble towards the car park. Dave grins back, white stick of the lollipop hanging out of his mouth.

“Home!” Elizabeth echoes, throwing her hands up high to the sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got my shiny altaria if anyone was wondering, I love her so much
> 
> Elizabeth: rips the packaging off the lollipop with her bare teeth  
> John: "this is a normal child thing right?"  
> Dave: "yeah probably"
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed! This ones just pretty fun and light hearted, nothing too bad. Next chapter is their 2nd birthday!


	61. 32 Years Old. Second Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John prepares a birthday breakfast for Elizabeth and James' second birthday.

When John wakes up, he's nice and warm and toasty.

Mittens is curled up against his right leg, but her warmth is pale in comparison to Dave's body warmth and the still-warm hot water bottle sandwiched between them.

John turns his head to the alarm clock on his bedside table, squinting at its display. 8:30am, Sunday the fifth of February--the twins second birthday.

John pulls the covers up a little higher over his face, squeezing his eyes shut. He really doesn't want to get up.

Next to him, Dave lets out a grunt of displeasure.

“I'm sorry...did I wake you?” John asks, voice heavy with sleep as his head rolls over to look at Dave.

Dave's red feline eyes open, looking thoroughly annoyed. “Well you have  _ now _ .”

“I'm sorry.” John cracks an apologetic grin.

There's a silence. Dave closes his eyes. It appears he's fallen asleep again.

“It's the twins birthday today.” John speaks up, breaking the silence.

“I know John, I organised the party with you.” Dave's eyes remain closed, but his mouth curves up into a smile.

“I love them both so much.”

“I do too.”

“I need to make them a special birthday breakfast of pancakes.” John says. That was the original plan, but now he finds he doesn't want to get up.

“Have fun with that.”

“You don't want to help?” John attempts his best puppy dog eyes.

“I could be the taster if you want me to be?” Dave smirks cockily, one eye cracking open in a slit.

“Suit yourself.” John sighs, sitting upright. The cold air hits the exposed bits of his neck and hands, creeping into his pyjamas like cold fingers.

Slowly, he edges out of bed, shivering at the cold temperature. Part of him wants to stay in the warmth for longer, surely the twins can wait a little bit for breakfast? They're probably not even up yet. But alas, no. He needs to make them breakfast.

Before he stands up fully, John slips his glasses onto his nose. He just sits at the edge of the bed for a moment, thinking.

It's the twins second birthday. That's...scary. They're growing up so fast.

He stands after a moment, pulling the covers back over Dave. He slips his feet into his slippers, fancy sheepskin warming his feet.

 

Still tired, John exits their bedroom and stands there for a second. Sleepily, John pads over to the bar heater in the middle of the lounge room, flicking it on.

Without sparing a glance at the rest of the lounge room, John pads into the kitchen.

The kitchen is very neat and tidy. The benchtops are clear and everything is positioned exactly where it should be. The breadbin on the bench next to the fridge, the knife block right next to that. A scattering of knick knacks on the windowsill--bottle tops of milk cartons, a few pens and a teaspoon. Outside the window, the world is white. Well, not entirely, but the night has left a light dusting of snow on the ground. It's not snowing at the moment, but judging off the temperature, it'll probably snow again soon.

The first thing John does is fill up the kettle with water, putting it on to boil. Then, he busies himself by pulling out all the things he'll need; milk, butter, sugar, eggs, flour, vanilla essence, cinnamon, a mixing bowl and a wooden spoon. After getting that all set up, John pulls out two mugs from the cupboard--his own slightly chipped ghostbusters mug and Dave's even more chipped SBAHJ mug. John places in a scoop of instant coffee and a scoop of sugar in each.

Still waiting for the kettle to finish boiling, John begins to whisk all the wet ingredients in a measuring jug. Once they're all combined, John begins dumping in all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl, making a well in the centre. Then, he pours in the wet ingredients, whisking them until they combine to create a yellowy golden colour.

Batter finished, John turns back to the now boiled kettle, carefully pouring the water into the prepared mugs. He sets the carton of milk next to the mugs.

John flicks on the stovetop, then, with a bit of effort, heaves the heavy frypan out of its drawer and places it upon the stove top.

John then pours the milk into both cups of coffee. Grabbing Dave's SBAHJ mug by the handle (and a cookie from his experiments tin), John makes his way back into their bedroom. Cautiously as not to spill anything, John tiptoes over to Dave's side, placing his treats by the bedside table.

 

“Dave, I made you a coffee and brought you a cookie.” John says.

Dave rolls over to stare up at John, eyes opened into slits. Slowly, he sits up and takes the coffee in both hands, taking small sips. “You're a saint John, a literal saint. I'm gonna send a letter to the Pope and personally ask him to make you a saint. I'll make sure it's a big ceremony, and you can make everyone coffee and they'll all love it.”

John just rolls his eyes, letting out a huff of laughter. “You're impossible sometimes, you know that right?”

“I'm sorry, I'm still waking up.” Dave blinks rapidly, clearing his head. He takes a little nibble of the cookie. “And I still think Bacon and Maple Syrup flavoured cookies were a bad idea, stop trying to coax me into eating them.”

“I tried.” John shrugs, laughing.

Dave takes another bite of the cookie. “I mean, it's nice to wake up to as a treat with coffee, so it has that going for it.”

“I'm glad you somewhat like it.” John smirks, patting Dave's leg.

“I appreciate the coffee.” Dave says, taking a long sip out of the mug. He gives John a grateful look. “This shit is like my lifeblood. It's really gonna keep me going today.”

“Aw, I'm excited for it.” John smiles, taking a seat by Dave's side. “I've pre-prepared snacks for the party and I don't mean to brag, but they're gonna taste pretty great.”

“Of course they will.” Dave yawns and rubs the sleep out of his eyes. “I'll come and help you with preparations in a little bit, just let me finish my coffee first.”

“Of course babe!” John grins cheekily. “I have my own coffee to keep myself going while I cook. Speaking of which...I should probably get back in there and cook.” John plants a kiss on Dave's forehead before standing to leave.

“Can't wait to taste them!” Dave calls after John's retreating form. John just laughs, grinning at the compliment.

 

When John arrives back in the kitchen, the frypan is well and truly heated. John lobs off a knob of butter with a knife and chucks it in the pan. It hisses and spits, melting quickly.

Once the pan has a thin layer of melted butter coating it, John pours in a few small circles of pancakes. John takes a quick sip of his own coffee and readies a plate. By the time he does that, the pancakes are ready to be flipped. While waiting for that side to cook, John begins to pull a few toppings out of the fridge--whipped cream in a can, fresh berries, lemon juice and sugar, cinnamon sugar, butter, jam, maple syrup and a small packet of chocolate chips. Then he hurries back to the pancakes and chucks them on a plate. He covers them with a tea towel to keep them warm.

After the first lot of slightly burnt pancakes come out, John pours in more batter. The process of making pancakes continues on, with John making perfect pancakes pretty quickly. The first few are  _ always _ burnt and deformed, no matter what, but the rest of the batch turn out fine.

A sudden feeling of human arms wrapping around him forces John to freeze up in shock. A pale arm reaches for his pancake pile, pulling out one of the top pancakes before retreating. “Nothing personal kid.” Dave smirks incredibly cockily, words slightly muffled by pancake.

“Dave! Holy shit, don't do that!” John squeaks, placing a hand on his chest.

Dave lets out a guffaw, letting go of john and stepping back to lean on the fridge. “This is pretty good, the taster approves.” Dave grabs the can of whip and squirts it on the remainder of his pancake, shoving it in his mouth.

“Thanks? But I already know that recipes good, I've made it heaps of times before.” John smiles thoughtfully, placing a hand on his hip.

“I'm just affirming your talent.” Dave shrugs before his tone grows serious. Or as serious as it can get when he's still got his bed head and a bit of whip still at the corner of his mouth. “But seriously though, can I help with anything? Waking the twins up? Setting the table? Grabbing the presents?”

“Let them sleep a little longer, it's their birthday after all.” John says, flipping the pancakes. “You could prepare the dining table with presents and decorations though.”

“Got it.” Dave says, shooting John with the double pistol finger guns. “I'm gonna decorate this shit so fucking hard.”

“It's not a competition Dave.” John smiles, looking at him.

“I believe our neighbourhood white mums beg to differ.” Dave replies, pulling open the cutlery drawer and taking out knives and forks.

John frowns, taking out the cooked pancakes and adding in more batter. “What is it with you and suburban white mums? What did they do to you?”

“I don't know really. I love listening in to their gossip. It's all so dramatic, great artistic inspiration.” Dave says, draping a tablecloth over his arm. He walks out of the kitchen and into the dining room, spreading said tablecloth over the dining table. He then sets four places with knives and forks--two sets with adult knives and the other two with Peppa Pig handles. Wordlessly, John places all the toppings on the windowsill between the two rooms, which Dave quickly collects and places on the table.

“I can't tell if that was sarcasm or not.” John glances at Dave through the window with a raised eyebrow.

“It's not, it actually inspired a scene in the upcoming Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff film.” Dave rips open the packet of party balloons left on the windowsill that connects the kitchen and dining room. He begins to stretch a bright pink one before bringing it to his lips and beginning to blow.

“What, Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff and the suburban white moms? I'm sure that one’ll make you twenty million in the box office.” John smirks sarcastically, flipping more pancakes into the finished pile and pouring in more batter.

With a half-blown balloon in his mouth, Dave just gives John a look. After a few more puffs of air, it's completely blown up and Dave proceeds to wrestle the balloon to tie it. “It will, because as much as people hate the franchise now, they still buy tickets to go and see it.”

“I guess that's true. It's so bad it's good.” John muses, scraping the last of the batter into the frypan and depositing the dirty bowl in the sink. Dave, having successfully finished tying up the balloon, tosses it behind him and grabs another one. As he starts on that one, John grabs one too and begins to blow that up. There's just the sound of cooking pancakes and balloons being inflated until Dave finishes.

“Yeah.” He says, tying up the balloon. “That's art for you.”

Once Dave is finished tying up his balloon, he's immediately handed another one by John. John avoids Dave's gaze with a smirk as he flips the pancakes.

After tying that one, Dave chucks it behind him and grabs yet another balloon. He looks wholly unenthused as he does so, a stark contrast to John's bright smile.

John flips the final pancakes onto the plate and switches off the stove. Dave lays out some streamers across the room, blu-tacking them from corner to corner. He then heads back into their bedroom, pulling the twins presents out from their hiding spot under the bed. Gathering them up in his arms, he joins Dave in the dining room and deposits them on the dining table. While Dave works on making them presentable, John brings in the plate of cooked pancakes and sets them down in front of the presents.

“Okay, we've got everything set up. I'll go wake the twins up.” Dave offers.

“I'll wait here then I guess.” John replies, a little awkward.

Dave nods, heading down the hallway with a confident stride. John busies himself by plumping up the seat cushions while he waits.

 

Dave returns a few moments later, holding a sleepy James in his arms. Dave deposits James into John's arms, giving his hair an affectionate ruffle.

“I'm taking it in trips because Elizabeth wasn't the most...receptive to being woken up.”

“Aww...someone's a little sleepy on their birthday!” John coos, booping James’ nose. James gives him a sleepy smile, resting his head against John's chest.

“She bit me John.” Dave shoves his hand under John's eyes, faint bite mark visible. “I don't know who she gets that from.”

“Dad did say I was a little bit of a handful as a baby.” John muses. He places James down on his chair, having to carefully pry his sons grasping fingers off in the process. “Come on my little birthday boy, time for breakfast.”

“I'm grabbing Elizabeth.” Dave announces, hurrying back towards the twins room.

John scoops up three pancakes and makes a small stack on James’ plate. “Now James, what topping would you like? Point it out to me.” John asks. James just looks at him confused, so John points each one out and explains them to him. “This is the maple syrup, it's really sweet and it's drizzled over the top of the pancakes. This is a can of whipped cream, it's all sweet and creamy. This is an assorted mix of berries and these are some chocolate chips, for decorating. We've got some spreadables like the jam and butter, and also some stuff to sprinkle on such as the cinnamon sugar and lemon and sugar.”

James points at the maple syrup, whipped cream and chocolate chips.

“Of course you pick everything sweet you little sweet tooth.” John laughs, drizzling maple syrup over the stack. He squirts on a little rosette of whip and tops that with chocolate chips. “We've got to wait until your papa gets your sister, then you can start eating.”

James looks a little disappointed, but nods his acknowledgement.

Speak of the devil, Dave reappears, holding Elizabeth. She looks pretty tired still, but her face lights up when she sees the pancakes.

“Happy birthday sweetheart!” John coos, serving three pancakes onto her plate as Dave sets her down. “What toppings do you want?”

Elizabeth surveys the options before jabbing a finger at the mixed berries and whip. “That one!”

“What a good choice! Isn't that yummy?” John smiles as he squirts on the whip and decorates with berries. With the twins served, he's able to finally sit down.

Dave sits opposite, serving himself pancakes. John waits patiently for Dave to finish before serving himself pancakes. John tops them with maple syrup, whip, chocolate chips and berries.

“Dig in everyone! I hope you guys like them!” John says happily, cutting off a piece of his pancakes and taking a bite. Its fluffy and flavourful, sweetened by the maple syrup.

“Happy birthday you two.” Dave says, in the process of topping his pancakes with everything. “You're two now, isn't that exciting?”

“Yeah!” Elizabeth cries, throwing her hands up in the air. James nods slowly. “We big kids now!”

John laughs, affectionate smile on his face. “Not quite yet. You've got a few more years to go until you're big kids!”

“No, we pretty big.” Elizabeth frowns.

“Yeah, but you're going to get a lot bigger when you get older.” Dave says, eating a mouthful of pancake.

“How big?” Elizabeth asks, cicking her head to the side.

“As big as us.” Dave replies, holding up a hand in demonstration.

“Cool!” Elizabeth nods, going back to her pancakes.

James holds out an empty plate with a triumphant grin on his face.

“Oh, weren't  _ you _ hungry?” John laughs, not hesitating to pile up more pancakes on James’ plate. John tops them with the same toppings as James had before and places the plate back in front of him. James happily digs in once more.

Dave finishes his lot soon after, but tops up his plate by himself.

Together, they work their way through the entire batch of pancakes. Conversation is kept to a minimum, since everyone's fairly hungry. There's only the sound of cutlery being scraped across plates.

“Present time!” John exclaims once everyone has finished eating, placing two small packages in front of the twins. Dave picks up all the empty plates and stacks them all in the kitchen, leaning through the window to do so. “These ones are for you both. Happy birthday!”

Elizabeth rips the wrapping open, revealing a cardboard box containing a skipping rope. James however, is far more delicate in opening his, precise fingers revealing a box containing a recorder.

James immediately attempts to open the box and after struggling a little, John comes to his rescue. John opens it and pulls it out for him, placing it in his sons open hands.

James places the recorders mouth on his lips and blows--and doesn't stop. John glances at James, then Dave.

“We really didn't think this through.”

“No.” Dave sighs. “We really didn't.”

Elizabeth holds up the box towards John, obviously wanting him to open it for her. John does with a smile, placing it in her hands.

“Thank you!” She exclaims, hopping off her chair and beginning to skip with the skipping rope. Her slippered feet thud against the wooden floor and the rope constantly brushes up against the wall.

“Hey! We got some more here!” John laughs, holding out two more presents. That gets their attention. James stops blowing on the recorder and Elizabeth jumps back up onto the chair, abandoning the skipping rope.

Once again, they unwrap their presents, this time revealing soft plush toys. A leopard for Elizabeth and a rabbit for James.

Elizabeth clutches hers to her chest. She already has quite the collection of stuffed animals all from family and friends. They all sit on her bed, but her favourite at that time (which usually tends to be the one last gifted to her) tends to follow her everywhere. The last one is getting a little grubby from being dragged around in the dirt. Hopefully she fixates on this one so her old one can be washed. “Thanks…” She smiles softly.

“Aw, you're welcome sweetheart. Happy birthday!” John holds his arms open wide for a hug. Both children fall into it and he holds them tightly. After a few seconds he lets them go.

“What are you going to name them?” Dave asks, crouching down to their eye level.

Elizabeth pauses in thought, before her little face lights up. “Spots!” She crows.

“Oh isn't that a nice name? Hello Spots.” Dave says, waving at Spots. “What about you James, what have you got?”

James just shrugs, letting out a phweet from the recorder.

“That's a good name too. Bit hard to pronounce, but your stuffed toy will be the coolest stuffed animal on the block.” Dave replies unfazed, waving at James toy too.

“Those are such good names!” John grins, repeating Dave's words with a soft tone. “I'm glad you like them. Happy birthday!”

“Happy birthday.” Dave shares John's sentiment, ruffling both of his children's hair.

“Thank you!” Elizabeth cries, beaming widely with Spots tight against her chest. James nods his agreement beside her. 

“Don't thank us just yet, it's time for the big present!” John exclaims, clapping his hands together. Both twins looks up at him in surprise.

“Big one?” Elizabeth asks.

“Yeah, it's outside. Let's go.” Dave rises to his feet, heading towards the back door. He swings it open, revealing a new tyre swing hanging from a tree in the backyard. Dave steps out onto the porch, followed by Elizabeth and James.

 

“Do you like it sweethearts? I made it for you two.” John says, leaning against the back door.

“I helped.” Dave says, indignant.

“I love it!” Elizabeth says excitedly, dashing over to the swing, tucking Spots into her pyjama shirt she clambers atop it. James beams up at John, quickly hugging John's leg in thanks before dashing after his sister, recorder wailing as he runs. Dave quickly follows as the adult supervision.

Elizabeth kicks off her slippers, prompting Dave to have to hurriedly grab them and attempt to jam them back on her feet. She kicks them off again, further this time, making him run to collect them and put them back on her feet. James clambers up beside her and, as if acting on some psychic twin powers, they simultaneously throw off their slippers.

“Keep them on your feet! It's cold!” Dave complains, once again traipsing forward to collect the shoes and jamming back on their feet. Both of them giggle wildly.

John watches them from the back porch with a smile on his face. Making that tyre swing sure was painful, but it was worth it to see his childrens absolute delight at seeing it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed! :) this was very long so :/ i guess. Anyway let me know how yall like this
> 
> I recorded myself reading out two of my essays for English trials tomorrow but it sounds like really bad asmr so :/ idk  
> Also I can't get the thought out of my head that in the Japanese version of 1984, Big Brother is Oniisan and I don't know how to feel about that
> 
> Also also I have a lowkey crush on this girl and she gave me some gum (bc I said I liked the flavour and she didn't offer it to anyone else) but she also left me on read so idk man :/


	62. 33 Years Old. Visit from Dad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dad comes over for a visit. What more can I say?

It's a calm, sunny Sunday afternoon, best spent relaxing with your family. The summer sun is hot, but not too hot as to force you to take shelter indoors with the air con blasting.

Dave sits on the back porch and observes as John goalkeeps for Elizabeth--who’s darting around madly kicking a soccer ball. Her face is set hard with determination as she aims the ball past John. John misses it, picking up the ball and throwing it back to Elizabeth with a congratulations, but Dave can tell the miss was intentional. Even James, normally not one for physical activity like his sister, is joining in on the fun. Dave's not really clear whose side he's playing on, but James doesn't seem to care. He's not getting the ball too much either, his sister is hogging it.

The reason why they're so excited and active is probably because their grandfather is paying them a visit.

Dad sits beside Dave, half-drunk cup of lemonade in his lap. He watches his grandchildren with a proud interest, mouth quirking up into a smile when Elizabeth scores yet another goal.

“Yay!” Elizabeth cries, jumping up a little in the air. James claps, looking a little confused.

“Good job sweetie!” Dad calls out to her. She beams at his praise, but James looks a little disappointed. John rolls the ball back to Elizabeth, who stops it with her foot.

“Yeah, great job sweetheart! But why don't you let your brother have a go? He's playing too you know.” Dave calls out to her. James beams at the acknowledgement, turning his attention to his sister.

”Fine.” She grumbles, kicking the ball towards James. It's a little more forceful than it has to be, but it reaches James just fine. James takes a swing, leg speeding towards the ball. He misses, but his leg continues, causing him to fall over and land on his back. James blinks in stunned silence before screwing up his face and opening his mouth in a silent wail.

“Shit.” Dave mumbles to himself and sets his glass of lemonade down, getting up. He kneels down beside his son, supporting him to sit up. “Come here sweetie, you'll be okay.”

John hurries over, kneeling down beside Dave. “Are you okay?” He fusses, hands hovering over James’ body.

Elizabeth toddles over, curious. James stares back at her, eyes teary. “Sorry.” She mutters under her breath, so quiet that it almost goes unheard.

“Come on James, we can sit this one out huh?” Dave says, helping James to his feet. ”You can sit next to your grandfather.”

“Grandfather makes me sound so old...” Dad sighs, patting the spot beside him. James toddles on over and plonks beside him, falling over minutes prior seemingly forgotten.

Dave fixes up James a big glass of lemonade, pouring it from a jug on a nearby table. He passes it to James, who takes it with both hands, taking a small sip before beaming up at him.

“Dad, you're 65. That's pretty old.” John laughs, picking up the soccer ball and tucking it under his arm.

Dad shakes his head, tutting disapprovingly. “This disrespect for his own father...”

“To be fair, in a year you'll be able to retire Dad.” John chucks the ball back to Elizabeth and resumes his positions as goalkeeper.

“John, stop being ageist against your father.” Dave mock-frowns, folding his hands under his chest. “You're a medical professional, you should know better.”

John purses his lips together, looking at Dave quietly. He blinks a bit, and he looks like he's struggling to come up with a response.

Elizabeth takes opportunity of John's distraction and kicks in a goal. John snaps his attention back to the game at hand, laughing a little in surprise. Elizabeth toddles over to the ball, kicking it back to John. 

“Well John is right, I am very close to retirement.” Dad nods, humming a little.

“I can't wait until I retire.” Dave sighs wistfully.

“Dave you're 33, you're a long way off from retiring.” John laughs, stopping the ball with his foot and kicking it back to Elizabeth.

“Yeah but John, we don't have to--”

Suddenly, Dad cuts him off, letting out loud, hacking coughs. A tiny bit a spittle drips from his lips. John immediately rushes to his side, rubbing his back frantically.

“Dad! Are you okay?”

Dad continues coughing, the sound loud and phlegmy. John starts patting his back hard in order to alleviate the coughing.

Eventually, Dad stops coughing, placing one hand on his chest. “I'm fine.”

“Oh thank God, you gave me a massive scare.” John sighs in relief, withdrawing his hand from Dad's back.

“Ah stop worrying, I'm fine see? I just have a little cold at the moment.”

“In the middle of summer?” John raises an eyebrow.

“Yes. Now stop worrying. I'm perfectly fine.” Dad waves off John's concerns. 

John lets out a sigh. He walks up the porch steps to get to the lemonade jug, ruffling Dave's hair as he passes. John pours up two glasses of lemonade before turning to Elizabeth.

“Come on Elizabeth, lets take a break. I poured you a glass of lemonade.”

Elizabeth perks up and, ditching the soccer ball underneath her foot, dashes towards John. She skids to a stop in front of John, reaching up to accept the offered glass. “Thank you!”

 

“So John, when are you two getting married?” Dad asks, tone serious.

John does a spit take of his lemonade, eyes going wide. “Dad!”

“Marriage is a stupid social construct that I am wholly against. It originated ages back to signify the ownership of a woman being passed from her father to her husband and I don't agree with that.” Dave says, deadpan. “Also, if we went by the ancient traditions, I'd have to ask you about it and give you several goats, which I don't happen to have any of.”

“You damn millennials.” Dad shakes his head, letting out a dry chuckle.

Dad sounds fine now, but John can't help but worry. As much as they were joking about it earlier, Dad is getting old. And as people get older their immune system tends to get worse at fending off diseases, so something like the common cold could be a killer for the elderly.

John sighs, shaking his head. Dad isn't elderly yet. He was probably right, it's nothing to worry about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed it! :)  
> My cat is currently lying in bed next to me, slobbering slightly and purring madly which is nice before a three hour biology exam! Haha wish me luck


	63. 33 Years Old. Gardening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jade and Kanaya come back from a trip to the local nursery, and together plant their new plants.

“Please be careful Jade, I am nursing  _ very _ precious cargo.” Kanaya stresses, eyes darting from the box of plants currently being cradled in her lap and Jade in the driver's seat.

Jade turns to look at her and away from the road, causing Kanaya to stress more. “Oh relax Kan, I'm not going too fast.”

Kanaya purses her lips together, clutching the box of plants even tighter. A rather tall stalk of lavender brushes against her nose. She shakes her head slightly to get it off. “You went very fast over that speed bump. I nearly dropped the box.”

“Sorry Kan.” Jade sighs, turning back to the road. Her demeanor immediately brightens as she turns into their street. “But hey, no need to worry about dropping them for much longer! We're pretty much home.”

“Hmmm.” Kanaya looks out the window, observing as their house gets closer and closer, until Jade is pulling up in the driveway.

Jade hops right on out of the car once it's stopped, closing her door behind her. She proceeds to walk around the front of the car and open Kanaya’s door for her. Kanaya, still holding onto the box, gracefully steps out of the car.

“How was your trip?” Rose is sitting on the front porch, leaning back in her chair with a book in her lap.

“It was great!” Jade beams, taking the box from Kanaya and turning to face Rose. “We got heaps of new plants!”

“Fascinating.” Rose takes a sip of coffee, looking Jade dead on in the eye. Sir Reginald Woofers, their surprisingly placid German Shepherd appears, tail wagging slowly.

“Yeah!” Jade grins, greeting Sir Reginald Woofers with pats with one hand whilst hoisting up the box with the other. Still patting Sir Reginald Woofers, she takes the box over to the pre-prepared garden bed surrounding a birdbath, setting it down gently. “We got a whole bunch of pansies, some more lavender, more vegetables for Kanaya and a really cheap catnip plant for our cats!”

“Oh my. That's a lot of plants.” Rose states, calmly observing Jade as she unpacks the plants. Sir Reginald Woofers has flopped down beside Jade, enjoying soaking up the sun.

“There's more in the back of the car.” Jade gestures vaguely in the direction of the car as she squeezes a bright yellow pansy out of its pot.

As if on cue, Kanaya sets down another box of plants next to Jade. She then leans down, pressing a kiss to Jade's temple. “I'll help you garden in a minute, let me go grab my gardening apron first.”

“You don't need to wear one of those you know. The whole point of gardening is to get dirty.” Jade turns to look up at Kanaya, hands still.

“Let's agree to disagree, I don't like getting dirty.” Kanaya sniffs. “You know this shirt was expensive.”

Jade laughs, digging a small hole in the dirt. “Of course!”

Kanaya heads inside to grab her gardening apron.

Jade places the pansy into the hole, patting it down until its planted. Gradually, she works on planting the remaining yellow pansies. They ring the base of the birdbath, bright yellow; vibrant and happy.

“I arrived too late to help you with the yellow pansies. My apologies.” Kanaya pipes up, appearing behind Jade.

“It's okay! We still have heaps of other plants to plant! I know you prefer to plant vegetables anyway.” Jade beams.

“Yes.” Kanaya nods and holds out a pair of gardening gloves to Jade. “I got you some gardening gloves.”

“Thanks, but I don't need them.” Jade shakes her head as she waves off the offered gloves.

“Yes you do.” Kanaya insists.

Jade begrudgingly takes the gardening gloves and puts them on. The purple flower patterns contrasts with her yellow t-shirt.

Kanaya kneels down beside Jade, taking a red pansy out of the box. Much gentler than Jade did, Kanaya works them out of their pots.

Jade begins to dig holes around the birdbath for them, readying them for Kanaya. Together they slowly work on planting them around the birdbath. When they finish, Jade stands, wiping her hands on her jeans.

“What do you think Rose? Pretty nice, huh?” Jade calls up to her wife.

Violet eyes peep up from their book to peer at the new flowers around the birdbath. “I suppose it does add a nice something to the birdbath. However one would always like actual birds in the birdbath.”

“Pansies make a nice border.” Kanaya stands up beside Jade, brushing off her skirt. “They add colour, and they're quite cheap.”

“Quite pretty too.” Jade adds as she leans down to pick up the pot of catnip. It brushes against her chin and tickles against her nose, causing the minty scent to invade her nostrils. “Especially the multi coloured ones.”

“I think lavender always looks the best.” Kanaya muses as she admires their handiwork.

“That's why we got some more!” Jade laughs, hoisting up an empty pot. “Do you want to plant to lavender while I plant the catnip?”

“Sure.” Kanaya replies, picking up the lavender.

Jade then sets them down next to each other and heads back over to the car. Picking up a bag of soil, Jade carries it back to the pots and dumps the bag beside them. She settles back down next to the items and begins to work the catnip out of its pot. Jade then rips open the bag of soil and half fills up the clay pot. Gently, Jade plants the catnip into the pot. The brownish-green leaves contrast the stark white pot. Already, she has the perfect spot for it. As soon as she saw the catnip plant in the clearance section with the five dollar sticker on it she knew exactly where she'd put it.

Standing up with the pot in her hands, Jade carries it up the steps of the porch and places it in the centre of the table beside Rose.

“A present!” Jade says cheerily.

Rose looks up at it with a blank look, her knowledge of plants lacking. It isn't until Jaspers the Third hops up onto the table and begins chomping at the leaves that recognition lights up her face. “Oh, it's nepeta cataria.”

“Rose, just say catnip.” Jade says, chuckling a little. Her eyes dart down to the soft white light illuminating Rose's chest but says nothing. “You don't have to impress me by saying the latin name.”

“I'm not trying to impress you.” Rose sniffs, insulted. The light cuts off abruptly. “I was merely stating its proper, latin name.”

Jade shakes her head, smile still on her lips. The phone in Rose's lap is pretty obvious, but Rose can be a little funny sometimes.

Kanaya ascends the steps to stand by Jade's side. “I've planted the lavender. Would anyone like tea?”

“Oooh yes please!” Jade beams.

Rose nods slowly, eyes thoughtful. “A nice cup of green tea with lemon would be nice.”

“I'll be right back out with them.” Kanaya says, pausing briefly before heading indoors.

Once Kanaya has disappeared indoors, Rose fixes Jade with a violet eyed stare. “What are the rest of your plans?”

“Well, our main focus is Kanaya’s vegetable garden. A few things didn't make it through the winter, so we're using the warmer spring weather to top it up again.” Jade replies, unbothered by Rose's stare. “Soon we’ll be able to make food from the garden again.”

“That'll be nice.” Rose smiles. “I've honestly been missing all the homegrown dishes you'd make.”

“And I've missed making them.” Jade sighs, pulling up a chair and sitting down on it.

Rose lets out a small noise of contentment and turns to stare at Jaspers the Third. By now, he's rolling around furiously on the table, mouth slightly ajar. Rose lifts a hand and places it on his exposed stomach. Jaspers the Third immediately whips around, making a loud ‘hrmmp’ noise.

Jade lets out an amused laugh, her own hand reaching to join Rose's on Jaspers the Thirds belly.

“Aren't cats amazing?” Rose asks. “Incredibly powerful predators, but they're so small that all of their hunting skills are practically wasted on us humans. Now they spend their days being picked up and coddled by humans. One day they may rise up against us, overthrow us and kill us all. Perhaps they will tolerate us some more in exchange for food and warmth. Who knows.”

“I will always say that I'm more of a dog person--” Jade glances over to the peacefully resting Sir Reginald Woofers. “--but I am pretty partial to our cats. They're like our children.”

“And here I thought I was the crazy cat lady.” Rose smirks, withdrawing her hand. Jaspers the Third perks up and swipes at her, disappointed.

“Oh you still are the crazy cat lady my dear.” Kanaya appears back outside, carrying two mugs in her hands. She sets down a mug covered in cats in front of Rose and a simple blue and yellow striped mug down in front of Jade. “The only difference between you and all the other crazy cat ladies is the fact that you're married.”

“That's not true. Ms Jenkins down the road was married. She is lovely and has seven cats.” Rose counters, taking a sip of her green tea. Suddenly, out of the blue, another of their cats, Socks, appears, winding around Rose's legs. Smiling softly, Rose leans down to pet her head.

“Key word there Rose; was.” Jade interjects, pointing at their third cat who has also appeared. “And look at you know, you've literally summoned several cats as we're discussing this.”

Rose looks up at Charlotte on the railing of the porch. Wide blue eyes stare deeply into Rose's own. “I don't have food for you.”

Charlotte lets out a huffy meow and leaps up onto the table, joining Jaspers the Third in chomping the catnip.

“Nevermind, I think all she wanted was to get high!” Jade laughs, leaning an elbow on the table. “Our cat is a drug addict Rose, look!”

“Hm.” Rose says, and takes a small sip of tea.

Kanaya reappears, holding a tray of biscuits. Jade feels guilty that she didn't even notice Kanaya had left again, which dissipates slightly when Kanaya gives her a wide smile.

“Thanks Kanaya.” Jade takes a biscuit and dunks it in her tea.

“You're welcome.” Kanaya hums, pulling up a chair and perching on it daintily. She takes a biscuit and nibbles on it delicately.

“I must admit, that bird bath is looking a lot more colourful.” Rose says, her eyes fixated on the yellow and red pansies surrounding the base of the birdbath.

“Yeah! We weren't originally planning on buying pansies, but they were pretty cheap and Kanaya had the brilliant idea of surrounding the birdbath with them! We wanted to put something there, but we didn't know what.” Jade beams, shooting a brilliant smile Kanaya’s way.

“Well, you were the one who funded our garden excursion.” Kanaya points out. Her eyes drift from the birdbath to the second box of plants, this one filled with potted vegetables.

Jade tips her head to the side in acknowledgement. “That's true.”

“Well, I hope you two have fun with it all.” Rose leans over to take a biscuit, biting it in half.

“We will. We always do.” Jade smiles, downing half her tea in a single gulp.

“Yes. I realise you meant to sound sarcastic but we will have fun.” Kanaya takes a sip of her own tea.

“I wasn't being sarcastic I was being genuinely sincere.” Rose frowns, tone slightly huffy.

“I'm sure.” Kanaya blinks slowly.

Jade slams down her empty mug on the table, dramatic. “Thanks for the tea Kanaya!” Jade springs to her feet, pushing the chair back and startling the cats in the process. “Breaks over!”

“Oh, well, you're welcome.” Kanaya looks confusedly at Jade, as if trying to figure out her wife's sudden burst of energy.

“You gonna come join me Kanaya?” Jade asks, already halfway to the second box of plants.

“I….yes. Hold on.” Kanaya hurriedly drinks the rest if her tea and hurries after Jade. But of course, not before laying a brief kiss on Rose's forehead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I support these three lesbians, their three cats, their dog and all of their many plants.
> 
> I got inspiration for this after going on a bunnings trip with my dad and gardening with him, but then I later realised that Jade and Kanaya would not have access to all the Australian plants we bought (ie azaleas) so that was great :/  
> I am so sorry for this being so late but over the past two weeks I've just been...stressed and depressed. My art major was due (which I've finished) and the trial results that came back could've gone a lot better. I've been a little suicidal too, not because of this fic but just a culmination of everything. School is stressful, I'm starting to realise that I don't have that many friends and no one I can really call my best friend bc I don't really think she wants to be my friend anymore. I...don't really blame her.  
> My parents are so negative about everything and they have been my whole life and it's really wearing me down.  
> I'm sorry this came out so late and honestly it's not the best, but I just had to get it out there. I'm sorry to the jaderosemary shippers, I'll give you something better a little later. I really hope you enjoy it regardless.


	64. 33 Years Old. Third Birthday.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Elizabeth and James' third birthday party.

“Come on, which of the birthday kids is getting a go on the piñata first?” Dave asks, voice abnormally soft as he holds out a stick to his now 3 year old children.

Elizabeth immediately grabs it out of his hands. “Ladies first.” She says, triumphant.

“What do we say Elizabeth?” Dave reprimands, voice going momentarily harder.

“Thank you.” Elizabeth replies, hardly looking at Dave as she takes a few swings. James looks at it, a little tearfully.

“Hey, it's okay sweetheart, you'll get your go next. Your sister called dibs.” Dave pats him on the shoulder. James looks from his sister, to the stick in her hands, to Dave, to the piñata. He lets out a little huff, sulky, but accepting.

Dave lifts Elizabeth up onto his shoulders, making sure she's balanced before making an announcement to the gathering crowd. “It's the birthday girls go first!”

Elizabeth blushes lightly at the attention, ducking her head down and focussing her attention on the stick.

Dave steps closer to the piñata, placing a hand on its leg to hold it still. The piñata is a traditional, store-bought one, shaped like a donkey and coloured brightly with green, yellow and pink. Dave tried making a homemade one, but it ending up taking too long and being far too messy.

“You ready Elizabeth?” Dave asks, removing his hand.

Elizabeth stares the piñata down, blue eyes boring into the piñatas pink ones. With a smirk, she raises the stick high above her head, bringing it down.

With a loud smashing noise, the piñata rips open. It doesn't tear completely, but now it has a large tear on its back. It's large enough that some of the candy from inside has fallen onto the floor, which is quickly snatched up by a few of the braver children in the crowd.

Elizabeth lets out a whoop of triumph and snatches a few pieces of candy out of its back. Dave doesn't bother to tell her that that's not how a piñata works.

Dave lifts her off his shoulders and places her back down on the ground. She wastes no time in hurrying back to one of her preschool friends, dropping the stick on the ground as she goes. Grumbling under his breath, Dave leans to pick it up.

James toddles closer, placing a hand on Dave's calf with his eyes focussed on the stick. Dave hands it to James, who takes it with a wide smile. Dave lifts James up onto his shoulders, holding him tightly. Again, Dave steadies the piñata.

“You ready to swing?” Dave asks, looking up at James. James nods slowly, grip tightening on the stick as his eyes dart around. Dave pats his leg reassuringly.

James takes a deep breath and brings the bat down on the piñata. Due to Elizabeth's previous hit, the piñata splits right in two, candy cascading onto the floor. Inwardly, Dave winces. That piñata was supposed to be for everyone to get a go at! What's he supposed to do now to keep 15 3 year olds entertained until John comes out with the cake?

Luckily, they don't seem to care. The group of preschoolers has transformed into a wiggling, yelling mass at the base of the now ruined piñata. James tugs on Dave's hair, insistent on being placed down.

Dave deposits him on the ground and takes a step back. Immediately, James joins the mass, diving for candy with the rest of his peers. A few of the parents in the crowd shoot him dirty looks. What's Dave supposed to do about this? Stop them?

“Don't look so shocked. You were like that once too Dave.” Dave whips around to meet face to face with Dad, who gives him a grin. “I believe I remember a piñata at one of John and Jane's birthday parties going down in a similar fate.”

“Well, they definitely get it from us.” Dave laughs dryly, taking a glance at the still writhing mass of children. 

“I believe most children behave that way around candy regardless of anything.” Dad muses.

“Hey, are we going to do cake?” John asks, seemingly appearing out of thin air. In his arms, he holds a chocolate cake on an ornate plate. The frosting splits it down the middle--one side a hot pink and the other a pale blue.

“Oh shit John, you scared me!” Dave startles.

John lets out a soft chuckle. “Sorry, I didn't mean to do that.”

“You better not have.” Dave jokes, folding his arms against his chest. John just snorts and rolls his eyes.

“We going to do cake?” John repeats his earlier statement, an eyebrow raised.

“Yeah, hold up. I'll rally the troops.” Dave surveys the mass of children. Dave cups his hands around his mouth, amplifying his voice. “We got cake!”

Almost immediately, the writhing hoard of children separates and parts around James and Elizabeth. Elizabeth looks back at them, chocolate smeared around her mouth. James’ trouser-pockets are stuffed with candy.

“You guys ready for cake?” John beams.

“Yes!” Elizabeth yells, throwing her arms up in the air, her brother echoing her excitement.

“Come on then, time for cake.” John smiles again, heading over to the large party table to place the cake on it. As if he is the pied piper and the cake is his pipe, a massive herd of children follow him, flocking around the table.

John looks at the unlit candles on the cake and proceeds to pat his pockets for a lighter. Dave subtly does the same, but it's Dad who comes to the rescue, wordlessly handing John a lighter.

Everyone presses closer to watch John light them, with Elizabeth and James both standing directly next to him. Dave edges slowly closer until he's right behind John. He rests a hand on his shoulder, which John accepts with a smile.

John begins to sing, a little off-pitch, as he shoves the lighter in his pocket.

“Happy birthday to you,” As John sings, the crowd of children begin to sing alongside him, high pitched and off key. “happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear Elizabeth and James, happy birthday to you.”

“Come on, blow out your candles! You gotta make a wish!” Dave prompts to his children. Taking a deep breath, both Elizabeth and James blow out half of the candles each.

Everyone cheers. Elizabeth looks proud, but somehow James looks prouder.

Dave leans down closer to their eye level, voice in a whisper. “So, what did you wish for?”

“Can't tell you, its secret.” Elizabeth frowns fiercely. She seems utterly determined to defend her wish to the death, if need be. Beside her, James nods his agreement.

Fair enough, Dave supposes. He's curious to see what they wished for, but he can't ruin the magic. “Well I hope it was something good.”

“Time to cut the cake!” John says. He picks up a large cake knife, holding it over the cake. Elizabeth immediately reaches up a hand to join his, with James joining after a little prompting.

The knife slides through the cake with ease and little resistance. The knife comes out mostly clean. Elizabeth and James’ hands slip away from the knife as John continues to cut it up, serving it to the crowd.

Once everyone has a slice, Dave wraps an arm around John's waist, pulling him closer.

“You did a good job.” Dave says. “The cake is delicious.”

“Thanks.” John smiles, tired but genuine. His fork idly stabs at the cake as he stares at Dave. “I spent a while on it so I'm glad you like it.”

“Hey, I'm glad it's a normal chocolate cake and you didn't experiment by putting cheese through it or something.” Dave says, savouring in his mouthful of proper chocolate cake. Dave's never really gotten John's vendetta against packet mix cake, but he finds he has to agree with John a little bit. He really can taste the love poured into this.

“Cheese in a chocolate cake, that's a good idea.” John hums, bringing his forkful of cake into his mouth. He chews it thoughtfully, mulling it over. Using a soft, creamy cheese like camembert in the batter alongside dark chocolate could work, albeit be a very rich cake.

“Goddammit, I gave you an idea didn't I?” Dave says, frowning. Now he's imagining John handing him a freshly baked muffin and taking a bite, only to find a big lump of cheese inside.

John just laughs, his gleeful laughter mixing with the chatter and screeching of both the parents and the children.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyway so this took a while because I've just been...busy.  
> I have five more days left of school in my entire life and I'm a bit...overwhelmed. Less if you don't count our pitiful 'muck up day' and graduation. I have to put uni applications in and I have no idea what I want to do and my mum is super pressuring in hurrying and I just...don't know.  
> Anyway, so I hope you enjoyed? Sorry for ranting haha I'm just a bit stressed


	65. 33 Years Old. I Spy.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> On a long, boring car trip to the beach, John distracts the twins with a game of I Spy.

On a hot summer's day, it's a nice thing to go down to the beach. The frigid waters of the ocean is nice to cool off in after a hot, hot week.

Of course, to get to the beach, it's best to drive. And like most things, sometimes it goes well and other times it doesn’t.

Like right now, when the heat makes everything so uncomfortable and sticky and you just want to cool off by swimming but you can't, because the beach is still 20 minutes away. 

As Dave drives, his jaw is set hard and his eyes are squinted against the harsh sunlight--even with sunglasses. His eyes are fixated on the road ahead, looking thoroughly hot and bothered.

At least it's not too hot in the car, as the air conditioner is on full blast. In John's position in the front, he gets most of the blast and it is glorious.

“Are we there yet?” A voice pipes up from the back of the car.

John peers around his front seat to give his daughter a sympathetic smile. “No sweetheart, not for a little while yet.”

She leans back in her seat, sliding down with a loud groan. The twins aren't as lucky in getting the air conditioning as he and Dave are.

“Keep your chin up, just another 20 minutes to go.” John tries. If possible, this makes Elizabeth groan louder. She begins to slide down her seat, groaning all the way. “Hey, come on. It's not so bad.”

Elizabeth shoots him a glare, her legs kicking wildly in front of her. “But it's so boring! James is hogging the tablet and won't let me have a go!”

James, upon being mentioned, perks up, his fingers hovering just above the keys of a virtual piano. Elizabeth turns her glare to her brother, who shifts away, bringing his knees up to hide the tablet.

“Well, why don't we play a game too?” John shoots a glance at Dave, who gives him a slight shrug in response.

“A game?” Elizabeth perks up.

“Yeah, it'll be fun! Would you like to play I-Spy?” John asks, rattling off the first car game he can think of. Elizabeth nods, and John breathes a sigh of relief.

“My go first!” Elizabeth yells, throwing her hand up in the air. She looks around, eyes darting from things inside the car to outside it. Finally, she perks up. “I spy with my little eye, something beginning with C!”

“Ooooh, that's a tough one.” John brings his hand to his chin, feigning befuddlement. His eyes immediately dart to the other cars on the road and knows what it is. But the game is no fun if you get it right straight away and he doesn't want to upset his daughter, so John plays dumb. “Is it...a cat?”

“No.” Elizabeth giggles lightly, her eyes darting to a car driving level with their own car.

“Hmmm...a cow?”

“No!” Elizabeth giggles a little harder, cheeks a little red.

“What about the carrot sticks?” John points to the small container of carrot sticks resting in the cup holder, placed there to try and encourage healthy eating. Which has, as he now notices, not been touched.

By now, Elizabeth is beside herself with giggles. “No!”

“John, it's obviously a car.” Dave pipes up.

“Yeah!” Elizabeth giggles, fixing John with a pitying look. “Silly Dad.”

“Silly Dad indeed.” Dave tuts, shaking his head and giving John a condescending look.

“Oh shut up Dave, like you could do any better.” John returns the look, folding his arms against his chest.

“Ok then, I'll take you up on that challenge. I spy, with my little eye, something beginning with S.” Dave says smirking slightly.

John glances around quickly, searching for things starting with ‘S’. “A steering wheel?”

“Silly! It's because that's what Dad's being!” Elizabeth shrieks out in between giggles.

“Yeah Elizabeth, you got it right!” Dave laughs, removing a hand from the steering wheel in order to high five her.

“Oh, okay, is this a team roasting effort or something?” John huffs out, slouching on his seat. A soft tug at the sleeve of his t-shirt brings his attention to James. Hand movements slow and a little unsure, he begins to sign. Of course, being three, he's not fluent in sign language yet, but John gets the gist of what he's saying.

“What's he saying, I can't see.” Dave asks, squinting into his mirror to look at the back seat.

“He's saying that stupid also starts with ‘S’.” John replies, feeling very stung from all these sick roasts that these 3 year olds are handing him.

Dave lets out a bark of laughter. John shoots him a glare. Dave coughs awkwardly. “Okay, funny joke, let's lay off a little.”

“I'm a doctor you know. Just putting that out there.” John huffs sulkily. “I'm not an idiot.”

“Yeah yeah I get it, I was there for it all.” Dave rolls his eyes, smirking faintly. His tone is playful and teasing, causing John to huff harder and cross his arms dramatically.

“Yeah, but you didn't write my thesis.” John mumbles quietly, so only Dave can hear it. Dave lets out a snort.

“It's your turn now dad!” Elizabeth pipes up, shifting forward on her sear.

“Oh, right, yeah.” John blinks. “Hmmm, well I Spy with my little eye, something beginning with…” John glances around the car until his eyes fall upon the small case of mints shoved in the front cupholder..”M.”

“Monkey! Magic! Mayhem!” Elizabeth crows, rattling off the majority of ‘M’ words she knows.

“Mischievous children in the back of the car.” Dave smirks.

“Nope.” John laughs, shaking his head.

A sudden vibration in his pocket snaps his attention away from the game. He pulls his phone out of his hoodie pocket, which is determinedly vibrating away and flashing Jane's profile picture. “That's odd, why would Jane be ringing me? She never rings.” John murmurs, more to himself as he slides his thumb across the screen to accept the call. “Hello?”

Dave of course, like any good nosey boyfriend, is infinitely curious about what this phone call is about. Unfortunately for him however, Elizabeth has decided to have a one-sided screaming competition with her brother, so Dave can't hear Jane's part of the conversation.

“A-are you sure?” John stammers out, fearful, stricken look on his face. “H-hold on, I can't be hearing this right.” John cups a hand over the mouthpiece of the phone and calls out to the kids in the back. “Elizabeth please be quiet, I'm having a very serious conversation.” John hushes her. Surprisingly enough, she shuts up and stares curiously at John's increasingly worried expression.

Dave is by now, more so concerned than curious. He feels a little helpless. He doesn't know what's going on, except it's upsetting John. All he can do is drive.

“O-okay. I'll be there as soon as I can be.” John finally says after a long pause. “Goodbye Jane. Thanks for letting me know.”

John presses his thumb on the ‘hang up’ button and the call ends with a soft beep.

“What's wrong John? Is everything okay?” Dave asks, concerned.

John looks up from his phone screen, eyes a mixture of haunted, terrified and sad. “Dads just had a stroke.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:3c  
> John, sitting passively in the car as his family roasts him: Well at least it can't get any worse...
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed? I've been playing a lot of acnl and spirit tracks and it's great, im totally not stressing about my hsc nope not me


	66. 33 Years Old. It's not fair...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John joins Jane in visiting Dad at the hospital. He hasn't woken up yet and the silence is unbearable.

As a doctor, John's workplace is a hospital and he's never quite understood the fear of hospitals. Sure the overly clean environment can be creepy to some, but to John it makes sense. You can't heal people in a filthy environment, they'll just get sicker.

But it wasn't until he saw his own dad lying in a hospital bed that he truly understood the fear.

 

It's just him, Jane and an unconscious Dad in the room.

It's silent, save for the beeping of the monitors. Everything is so white and clean and sterile.

John's eyes dart over to Jane, opening his mouth in an attempt to say something, anything to get rid of the terrible silence but nothing comes out.

It's too quiet. Dad's always so loud and joyful and it's so wrong to see him like this, so quiet. Even in his sleep, he would snore so loudly John could hear it in his upstairs bedroom.

John's panicking a little.

Scratch that. John's panicking a lot.

John lets out a deep breath. In. Out. In. Out.

He needs to calm down.

In. Out. In. Out.

Dad will be fine.

In. Out. In. Out.

With new modern technology, people can recover from strokes far easier than they could before.

In. Out. In. Out.

Dad will survive. He'll be fine. He will. There's no need to panic over it. There's no need to--calm down. Calm down you need to breath and calm down it's all going to be okay he's going to be okay just calm down take a deep breath and just stay calm just breathe--

“John? Are you listening to me?” Jane is frowning at him, concern on her features. She looks expectant of him. When did she speak?

“What?”

“You're hyperventilating.” Jane states, eyebrows furrowing further in concern.

“I am?” John looks up.

“Yes…” Jane says sadly, looking at John.

“I'm sorry I just…” John pauses, sparing a glance at Dad's sleeping face. “I'm a little in shock.”

“I get it, I really do.” Jane lets out a dry laugh. “I don't think anyone was expecting it.”

“What do we do now? What if he doesn't wake up? What if he wakes up, but because of the stroke he's not himself anymore?” John rambles on, rubbing his arm nervously.

“I don't know…” Jane sighs. “I really, really don't know.”

“I can take him in. We have a spare room that he can stay in and I'm a doctor, I'll make sure he's cared for.” John rambles, eyes widening slowly as he talks.

“John.” Jane states, laying a hand on his arm and stopping his rant. “We don't even know how badly the stroke damaged him yet. We should wait until he wakes up to make any decisions.”

“Right. Yes. You're right.” John takes a deep breath.

“Either way, you have quite a bit on your plate to take care of Dad. You have two three year olds John, and both you and Dave have full time jobs. Neither of you would be home to take care of him.” Jane states. The truth is hard, but needed.

John takes another deep breath. “You're right Jane. I just...want to pay him back I guess? He was always so supportive and caring and I hate that this has happened to him. He doesn't deserve it.”

“I know.”

“Fuck, I just…” John trails off, a complete air of hopelessness in his eyes. “I don't know. It hurts to see him like this. He was always so strong, and now he's just...”

“I know. H-he was always so good to us.” Jane's voice wavers slightly as she scrubs furiously at her eyes with her sleeve. “It's not fair.”

Now it's John's turn to look sadly at his sister. In an attempt to comfort her, he leans over the bed to place a hand on her arm. She turns to look at him, tears in her eyes. John looks back and he knows that his eyes are equally teary.

“It's not fair.” He echoes. “I-I don't want him to die--” He breaks off into a sob.

Jane takes a deep breath. Her own eyes are wet and she reaches up to rub at them. “All we can do is just hope for the best. That's all we can do for the moment.”

“I know.” John takes a step around the bed so that he's standing next to his sister.

Wordlessly, tearfully, he wraps her up in a hug. She accepts it, hugging him back just as tightly. Neither one mentions the tears or the soft sobs wracking their bodies. They especially don't mention Dad's unmoving body next to them, because it hurts far too much to look at.

Everything will be fine. It has to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long gap for not much content.  
> My hsc is literally tomorrow and ive spent all holidays studying. After my hsc i also need to get an art portfolio together for uni so i guess the next update won't be for a while, if at all. Sorry haha im just kinda super busy and i need to prioritize my life right now


	67. 33 Years Old. ...but it's getting better.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John is trying to help his Dad the best he can, but he feels it's never good enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, it's been a while I know :( I've now finished my hsc and have no more school ever! That means either more chapters or less chapters, we'll have to see. Either way, enjoy?

“Ah. This is nice sweetheart, thank you.” Dad shoots a smile at John from across the table. His hand is currently laced through the handle of a mug that's filled with tea.

“It's okay Dad, I'm happy to help.” John smiles softly as he sits beside his father, worriedly hovering over him. In the more metaphorical sense of course.

He knows he shouldn't hover like this, Dad  _ has _ gotten a lot better. It's been two months since his stroke and he's still recovering, but John knows he'll make it. He's recovering faster than most. Sadly he's still very forgetful and has a bit of a slur to his words, but at this rate he should make a full recovery.

“It was very sweet of you dear.” Dad smiles absently. He's looking at the empty chair beside John, and it takes John everything he has not to look sad.

“Of course Dad.” John replies, eyes flicking down.

Dad blinks slowly, hands involuntarily trembling as he picks up the mug. He looks...sad.

“Are you...okay?” John asks, slowly and softly.

Dad startles at the sound of John's voice. “I'm fine.” His mouth splits into a reassuring grin. “I'm just thankful for all your help.”

“It's nothing to worry about Dad, really. Dave and I are happy to help.” 

As if on cue, Dave's car pulls up in the driveway. Its red body glints in the sun. Almost immediately, the passenger door is flung open and Elizabeth bolts out. James follows after, carefully sliding out of the car.

Dave calls after them in an attempt for help, but is promptly ignored. He grumbles to himself as he picks up all the shopping bags, hooking them all over his arms.

Elizabeth clambers up the railing of the porch, perching up on top. James trails behind her, slinking up to stand beside John.

“Hello you two, how was shopping?” John asks, smiling.

“It was good. Papa got food.” Elizabeth shrugs nonchalantly. She looks a little irritated. Dave must not have listened to her demands for treats.

“Oh isn't that nice Lucy dear…” Dad nods distractedly, seemingly not even having noticed his slip up.

John freezes up.

Elizabeth lets out a haughty sniff. “It's Elizabeth.”

“Right. Right, yes. My apologies.” Dad blinks, coming to with confusion heavy in his features. “How could I have forgotten?” comes out in a confused, wide-eyed mumble.

“I-It’s okay Dad.” John stutters out. “I-It was just an accident.”

“I got all the food.” Dave appears, holding up an armful of plastic bags. They all weigh down Dave's arms, each one crammed on there. They're undoubtedly full of groceries. Like John said, they'll help in anyway he can.

“I-I’ll help you put it away!” John rises abruptly. Dave raises an eyebrow and John jerks his eyes at Dad in order to commune his message with him.

“Well as you wish.” Dave, getting John's message loud and clear. With a smirk, he dumps half of his load of groceries onto John. John loops them all through his arm with a soft grunt.

James attempts to follow, but John stops him, laying a hand on his head. “Stay with your grandad okay? We won't be long.”

James pouts, but obeys.

 

Dave enters Dad's house, briefly holding the door open for John before making his way into the kitchen. He sets the bags down on the kitchen bench, John following his lead.

“So we got the essentials like you asked, but I also got-” Dave pauses, rummaging through the bags before victoriously pulling a six pack of mini magnums. “-these!”

“Oooh!” John manages an excited smile, although he really doesn't feel up to it.

“They're the classic chocolate covered vanilla ones because y’know, your crippling allergy to peanuts.” Dave grins, turning to the freezer to place the magnums inside. “I don't mind too much though, I never liked peanuts anyway. They're too salty, and they have this really weird texture--not that you'd know of course. Peanut butter on the other hand, is delicious. I don't know who made it, but I commend them. Not being able to have peanut butter is truly the worst part of dating you John. I have to hide out in the shed in order to eat peanut butter, and then afterwards I have to disinfect my mouth with mouthwash. Do you know how gross that is? Peanut butter and extreme mint blast mouthwash do  _ not _ blend well together John.  _ Especially _ with the added taste of bread and strawberry jam.”

John looks down at his feet as Dave rambles on, Dave's words slowly being drowned out by his own thoughts.

“Oh shit. What's wrong?”

John blinks, surprised at suddenly being engulfed in Dave's arms.

“I-” John cuts himself off, pausing to collect his thoughts before continuing on. “Dads still forgetting things. He...he forgot Elizabeth's name.”

“Oh.”

“I-I’m just so worried about him. He seems to be doing alright and then he goes and forgets something important. He's always shaking...I'm just so worried. I don't want to lose him. I know he has a stay-in nurse now and he has all this support but...I just worry it won't be enough.” John sighs, taking a step back.

Dave squeezes John's shoulder comfortingly. “He'll be okay. He's a strong one.” 

“Y-yeah…” John trails off, gaze trailing off to outside, where Elizabeth is chasing James across the lawn, laughter loud and gleeful. The pressure on his shoulder increases and Dave begins to rub his thumb across John's shoulder.

“Come on. He's doing so much better now isn't he? Have faith in him, he'll pull through.”

John sighs once more, but this time it's more so one of relief. “Yeah. Yeah of course. You're right.”

“Of course I am.” Dave laughs, lifting his hand off of Dave's shoulder. “Now come on, help me put the rest of the groceries away.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it came out like 4 days ago, but who else is hyped by that smash ultimate world of light trailer???? Holy shit dude, it was even more intense than infinity war and it was so sad to watch everyone die? Especially the fact that my faves (Lucas, Ness and Isabelle) all died unceremoniously off screen. What was even sadder was how everyone tried to escape it? Like Zelda with Nayru's wisdom, the Inklings with the ink and of course, Palutena/Pit/Dark Pits sad deaths. Also multiple characters are literal gods or have insane psychic abilities/physical prowess and only a baby could escape? Not that I'm complaining, but still  
> The trailer was so sad alexa play lifelight


	68. 34 Years Old. Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave's insecurity of his true form vs curious 4 year olds, FIGHT!

The sound of brushing teeth and a lively humming fills the tiny bathroom. James is currently seated on the rim of the bathtub, toothbrush in his hand, while his dad and sister stand around the sink. John is humming a tune as he brushes, a soothing part of the night time ritual. Elizabeth is simply brushing, staring into the mirror intently. James isn't brushing, he's done. His toothbrush is clean and his teeth are even cleaner.

All of a sudden John turns to James, toothbrush sticking out of his mouth. “Come on James, brush your teeth.”

James points to his clean toothbrush in an attempt to display that he's finished. John frowns and shakes his head.

“That's not nearly enough time mister! You need at least two minutes of brushing time.” John pulls out the tube of toothpaste, expectant for James’ toothbrush. “Here, I expect at least another minute.”

Begrudgingly, James holds it out for him. Elizabeth peers around John's body, shooting James a smug look. James sulkily sticks his toothbrush in his mouth, glaring back at her.

John resumes his humming, keeping an eye on James in the meantime. James hunches in on himself and drags the brush along his teeth, ignoring the tingly sensation.

The door opens, quietly. Dave pokes his head through, looking thoroughly tired. He's been looking very tired lately.

“Hey babe, I'm going to bed. I need to cool down.” Dave rubs his eyes, looking utterly exhausted. James slides off the rim of the bathtub, toddling on over to his papa. James clamps himself around Dave's leg, pressing his cheek into pyjama pants. Dave laughs tiredly as he ruffles James’ hair. “Okay, come on now sweetie, none of that, I need bed.”

James pouts as John calls him back. He's sick of being treated like this! He's trying to help! Papa’s been so tired lately and he just wants to help.

Sulkily he pads back to his spot on the bathtub, keeping an eye on Dave. John reaches a hand out for him, wishing him goodnight. Dave takes the hand, giving John's knuckles a brief kiss before dropping it again. With a tired smile, Dave leaves the room, bidding them all a goodnight.

John turns his attention back to brushing his teeth and humming. As quietly as he can, James spits out the toothpaste and sets down his toothbrush on the sink. Silently, he tiptoes towards the door.

“You're finished?” Once more, John's voice halts James in his tracks.

James nods, a little shook up in being caught out.

“Alright.” John sighs. He gestures out the door. “Scoot off to bed, I'll come read your bedtime story in a minute.”

Relieved, James nods, closing the door shut behind him. However instead of heading towards his bedroom, he toddles towards his parents bedroom.

The door is closed shut and James can't reach the handle to get it open. Luckily, he has the intuition to grab the nearby step stool that usually resides in the kitchen (to help John reach things in the tall cupboards). James turns the handle. The door swings open.

 

Inside, a pale mass of feathers, fur and scales is lying in his parents bed. James forces back a sharp intake of breath.

The figure hardly spares him a glance as a familiar rumble comes from its mouth. “That was fast, shouldn't you be reading them a bedtime story?”

Papa?

The figure turns his head to look at him due to the lack of reply. Fear widens bright red eyes. He sits up abruptly. “James?”

In a rush of movement, he shifts back into his human form, coming towards James with his arms open. His movements are hurried and filled with panic. Suddenly, he halts. With a hacking cough, he transforms back into the other form.

James looks up at him fearfully. What's going on? Is this what's making him so tired and upset?

Dave slumps, letting out a sob of despair. Suddenly it doesn't matter that his papa is acting so strangely. He's sad, so James is sad too.

James toddles up to him and wraps his arms around him in a hug. The fur rubbing against his cheek is a bit weird, but already it’s a part of his dad.

Slowly, hesitantly, clawed hands hug him back. “I...shit James, this is hard to explain.”

James looks up at him expectantly. He lifts up his hands to perform brief, broken sign language.  _ ‘please?’ _

“Well, I-I look like this. Normally.” Dave starts, a little hesitantly. “It's because I'm a shifter. A special, rare case that has a ‘true form’, which is an amalgamation of all different kinds of animals. I've always looked like this, truly. This won't ever happen to you, don't worry.” Dave sighs, looking down.

James blinks. Then proceeds to hug his papa again. Is this what's made him so tired lately? James hopes that now he can get a little rest at least.

Dave laughs, a loud bark of relief. His posture relaxes immensely and he slumps back down on the bed. “Your dad knows, but your sister doesn't. I wanted to keep it from you both, preferably forever, but I guess that's not happening now is it?”

James lets out a little huff and rests his head on Dave's chest. His feet are lying across John's side of the bed, and he uses them to pull the covers over his body.

“I'm sorry James.” Dave sighs.

James turns his head to look at him and shakes it. Dave lets out a dry laugh.

“Alright alright…” Dave smiles, a genuine warm thing that James hasn't seen in quite some time.

 

There's a knock on the door. Dave perks up.

“Dave it's me.” John's voice comes from the other side of the door. “I can't find James.”

“It's okay. He's with me.”

“He is!?” There's surprise in John's voice as the door opens. He stands there, backlit by the light from the hallway, looking at Dave and James with wide eyes. A wide smile spreads across his face as he observes their relaxed postures. “He knows! Oh Dave see, I told you he'd still love you!”

James nods, beaming at both his dads. He's ecstatic to not only be in the centre of attention, but to know something his sister doesn't.

“I know.” Dave laughs sheepishly.

“This is why you don't listen to your insecurities.” John continues, perching on the side of the bed, mindful of James’ legs. He slides his shoes off. “Because they're always wrong.”

“What about Elizabeth? She doesn't know yet.” Dave points out. This receives him a glare from both John and James.

“Dave, stop being so pessimistic.” John shakes his head, patting his leg. “You're her dad, she loves you. James loves you.  _ I _ love you. We're your family, okay? We're here for you. Don't stress.”

Dave sighs. “Thanks John, you cured all my insecurities.” His sarcastic tone goes right over James’ head, but John gets it.

“Look.” John sighs. “I don't believe in your decision to hide your true form from our children. But, maybe now that you've seen that James still loves you, you should consider telling Elizabeth.”

“No.” Dave replies hurriedly, shaking his head.

 

Speaking of the devil, footsteps pitter patter down the hallway, growing louder with each step. Dave tenses up again. John hurries to stand in front of the doorway, blocking his daughter from entering just in time. Just because he doesn't agree with Dave's decision doesn't mean he won't support him.

“What?”

“Why does James get to sleep with you?” Elizabeth stares up at him, dead eyed and cranky.

“He doesn't, he's going to join you in five more minutes.”

“You said that last time! Then he stayed the whole night!” Elizabeth crows, complaining in a high-pitched, whiny voice. She does have a point, last time James did spend the whole night in their bed. It's sweet, but James can be very forceful when he wants something. Just like his sister.

“Elizabeth no-”

Too late.

Before John can finish talking Elizabeth darts between his legs, diving towards the bed. She takes no notice of the noises of complaint as she buries herself under the covers.

Dave looks up at John with worried eyes. John shrugs in retaliation. What can he do about this. Like, actually.

Dave coughs. “Okay. James. Elizabeth. Time for bed.”

This is met by muffled sounds of protest. Elizabeth pokes her head out of the covers and fixes Dave with a glare. “But I just got here!”

Then, she halts.

“Papa?”

“Oh shit.” Dave gulps, giving John a wild side-eye.

“Why do you look like that?” She leans closer, fixing Dave with a curious stare.

“Elizabeth-” John starts but Dave cuts him off.

“It's okay. I guess it's all coming out of the closet tonight isn't it?” He sighs, sparing his very expectant daughter a glance. “Well, I look like this normally. It's because I'm a shifter. I have a mutation and it makes me look like this. I'm always in my human form because I don't want to scare anyone.”

“Ok.”

John smiles at Dave's visible sigh of relief. Elizabeth shuffles around to lie next to her brother, laying her head on Dave's stomach.

“Come on, I think it's time for bed. Your papa’s tired and I'm sure you are too.” John tries, fixing them both with a smile. Neither of them seem to want to budge.

Dave yawns, loud and dramatic. “Ugh, yeah, I'm so tired, time for bed.”

“So are we.” Elizabeth replies, unblinking.

John lets out an exasperated sigh. “Alright fine, you can sleep here tonight--”

Elizabeth lets out a cheer and James claps his hands together.

“--if” John cuts them off, holding up a finger. “If you two promise you actually go to sleep this time and not keep us up chatting.”

“We promise.” Elizabeth nods as both her and her brother snuggle down under the covers next to Dave.

John sighs again. It's going to be a little bit of a squeeze tonight. Honestly the twins do this often enough that both he and Dave should consider getting a bigger bed.

Still smiling, John sets his glasses by his bedside and slips into bed.

“Goodnight everyone, sweet dreams.” Once John is comfortable in bed he leans over and flicks the bedside lamp off, plunging the room into darkness.

“What about our bedtime story?” Elizabeth pipes up. John groans internally, staring up at the ceiling in an attempt to come up with  _ something _ .

“Once upon a time…” Dave starts, as if sensing John's desperate irritation. “...there was a princess. She was young and beautiful, with a kind heart that was dedicated to her people. What time she didn't dedicate to her people she dedicated to her enormous library. One day, a monster attacked and seemingly nothing could stop it. It destroyed crops, killed all the knights who tried to attack it and ate and kidnapped her people. So the princess, with all her booksmarts, went after her remaining people. She knew the only thing that could stop it was lava, and so after tracking it down, she led it to a nearby volcano. The princess tricked it into falling into the lava and thus saved her people. The remaining people went back to the city and rebuilt, and the princess was regarded as a hero. The end.”

“That was terrible.” Elizabeth says bluntly. “Where did the monster come from? How did she know the only thing that could stop it was lava? How did she lead it into the volcano?” Her questioning is rapid-fire and doesn't show any signs of stopping until Dave holds up a hand.

“Well it was the best I could come up with on the spot. You want to try making up a whole story on the spot?” Dave 

James taps on Dave's arm. He can barely make out the words “I liked it”, but it's there.

“Alright, you've had your bedtime story. Now let's go to sleep.” John murmurs.

“I second that.” Dave replies, pulling up the covers over himself. “Come on, bedtime.”

“Awwwwww.” There's a noise of complaint, but that's quickly hushed.

James closes his eyes, comforted by the feeling of being sandwiched between his papa and sister. It's a nice comfort, hearing his families breathing and being cosy in bed. He's glad that everything is okay in the end. It's nice to be trusted with his papas secret, something so monumental to his papas life. His papa moves slightly, scales brushing against his arm. Elizabeth accidently kicks him, grumbling sleepily. His dad softly begins to snore, not loud enough to be an annoyance but quiet enough to be heard. Overhead, the fan makes a wobbling noise.

Slowly, listening to all these comforting sounds, James allows himself to drift off into slumber.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Me, pulling out the shifter plotline after doing nothing with it for ages: :/
> 
> ALSO! I have a discord now, so if anyone wants to hit me up for a mad chat, my discord is lord-of-cats 5348. I kinda wanna make a group chat on there to talk about a whole range of things, so hit me up or leave your handle down below if you're interested!

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed it!  
> This is going to be very long. Updates will be slower than they were before, but i will be continuing this story.  
> Also i am a humble Australian with no idea about the American schooling system so just a precursor.  
> Also also, I'm doing my best in my portrayal in John and his transness, but if I get anything wrong please don't be afraid to tell me!


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